Krait book 07 A Few Furry Little Problems
by slytherinsal
Summary: David's last year at Hogwarts, without such distractions as Triwizard Competitions should be nice and peaceful to let him take his NEWTs without trouble, right?  But then, this is Hogwarts...
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

The Summer holidays had at least been a little quieter this year.

David had spent time with his friend Lee Nuffield teaching him basic magic; and Lee, having left school, had accepted a position teaching sports and coaching Latin in Rowan House school for squibs and muggle relatives. A gate had been built between Hogwarts and Rowan House, going through cupboard doors and a bit more formal and easier to pass through than the old punishment cupboard under the stairs that came through into Myrtle's Loo. David was to teach one period a week until he became a full time member of staff and would be glad both of a full sized door and of not using the place he had once thought the most frightening thing in the world.

Since fighting Voldemort few things really could be called frightening by comparison.

The legacy of evil still remained though Voldemort had been dead for more than three years; and David had also gone with the New Marauders and Draco and Harry to Obscura Alley to investigate 66b.

It was owned by a Mordecai Filch; and on asking Argus Filch about him, that worthy hawked and spat and admitted that the fellow was his cousin but would they mind not mentioning the dirty little creep in his presence. Argus dragged out the punishment records for the time Mordecai was at Hogwarts to demonstrate the offences at which he had been caught, mostly involving little girls, and the one he had been expelled for at the age of fifteen was jinxing and stripping for 'unnatural concourse' a first year.

Armed with this information, the two young Aurors and their confederates went poking around with more zeal – and plenty of caution; and Lynx Black-Weasley, who was not supposed to be there, found the secret back way into the walled garden which opened directly onto Ravenscourt Park, right out of Wizarding space, through a gate just like the barrier at platform nine-and-three-quarters.

With this knowledge, after cuffing Lynx strategically on general principles, Draco and Harry planned to raid the place.

Lynx however – and friends – pointed out that rescuing the kids in there first might be a good idea in case he used them as hostages; and talked very fast – she and Senagra being the smallest – to be allowed to wriggle in through the cellar windows and apparate out the two children they had seen.

Hawke said

"No deal" and called in Beloc to do it instead.

A house elf was even smaller and more skilled at apparating; so the Junior Marauders could scarcely complain.

They did get praised though for good work.

Neither child, a girl of eight and a boy of seven, had any magical talent; in fact they were orphans who had got lost in the system. They had not been interfered with; the boy, Shawn Wensum, said they had been told that they were now slaves. He seemed quite on the ball and fascinated by the wizarding world; and the decision was made to place him in the Hogwarts orphanage and educate him in Rowan House when he was old enough. The girl was busy trying to deny the very existence of magic, and Draco duly modified her memory and took her to a police station explaining that he had found her wandering.

Then the aurors stormed the place.

It was as well that they had removed the children; Filch pulled a lever that collapsed the lower floor on the basement where they had been kept, evidently believing that if no captives were found he could not be prosecuted. Unfortunately for him the children had already been found AND he kept extensive and careful records of his muggle trafficking. And in his records was a letter from Malcolm Baddock – the letter Lionel Dell had seen that had started official interest in 66b – suggesting the use of Romanian orphans to sell as slaves.

Malcolm Baddock was to get an official warning from the Ministry for that; but there was no proof he actually dealt in slaves himself.

Many people would soon be embarrassed by the records of slaves they had bought however.

Draco and Harry were going to be busy for a long time.

For those who considered themselves part of the extended Snape family it was a matter of relief when Dione Parnassus safely birthed her daughter of rape in August; she was staying with them until the event was over so Krait might be her midwife. Krait suggested facetiously calling the baby Antigone, but Dione settled for Ismenia, sister of Antigone in classical literature but a name not unusual in the wizarding world.

"Besides, it's backwards" said Severus "The creep was by way of being a stepfather not …..all right, ceasing to be pedantic and moving in the general direction of away now" as Krait gave him a look.

"I like you being pedantic, sir" said Dione. "It's one of those points of certainty in a rather muddled life like mine is."

Wendy Malfoy produced her twin girls within a few days of Dione's daughter and called them in honour of the founders of the two houses as yet ungraced by Malfoys; though Wendy had drawn a line at Helga as a name after Helga Hufflepuff and went instead for the softer, East Anglian pronunciation of the Saxon name as Helya. Rowena after Rowena Ravenclaw needed no massaging.

Sirius Black, as well as chasing up the properties he owned, had been tracing those members of his family that had been disowned for, as he put it, being nice; the Hitchens family he had already resumed contact with after the arrival at Hogwarts of Leonard, to whom he was now, in the holidays, Uncle Sirius; Andromeda, who married Ted Tonks he had never lost touch with, nor his Uncle Alphard who had given him money when he left the family; Phineas, who supported Muggle Rights, had changed his name to Lenoir and his granddaughter and her step sister were at Hogwarts and already called Sirius 'Padfoot' quite cheerfully being luminaries of the MSHG. Marius the squib had taken a little longer; though one of his sons had been to Hogwarts, admittedly in Hufflepuff but undoubtedly a wizard, who had married a witch. Their squib son had married a Hogwarts dropout however and Castor and Pollux their twin sons were in the book due to come in when they were old enough; and before them another of Marius' grandsons, a boy called Jordan Christie.

Lucius had loaned Sirius his muggle chauffeur – Dudley Dursley with a shiny new driving licence and smart uniform – and Dudley had met, and was now seeing Marius' untalented but pretty granddaughter Valerie, who was at least a sensitive and was rather inclined to be impressed by someone who had stood against Voldemort although he was a muggle. She had not found a girl like the one who had birthed Dudley's son a surprise – she had been through muggle school – and thought little Harry adorable when she met him.

They were engaged before long!

Word came too of a further romance; one that had been building for some time.

Krait knew, because Abigail Greengrasse had cried on her shoulder about it, that the girl had fallen in love with the gruff but kindly Alastor Moody, known to most of the wizarding world as 'Mad-eye' for the enchanted artificial eye he wore to replace the one lost to dark magic, only one of his many wounds. Alastor had tried to help Abigail by attempting – fruitlessly – to reconcile her parents to how the girl had been used by Voldemort through no fault of her own and that was why she had an illegitimate child. Any idiot, as Krait said, could see he had lost his own battle with constant vigilance and mistrust and had become smitten with Abigail; and because he loved her tried to walk away from her. As he cited his wounds as one good reason not to tie any woman to him, Abigail had come up with an idea that she discussed with her sister and the marauders, asking questions about blood magic. She had asked Moody to visit her at school to discuss her options, having been given permission by Dumbledore to spend her last holidays there. She and Emmeline had gathered together certain potions; and as Alastor Moody greeted her, she took him by surprise with a _Stupefy_ spell, and when the angry auror came to it was to find that he had a new leg – still rather feminine – and Abigail was pale, one legged, and swigging skelegrow and flesh replenishing potions with a tourniquet and a scared but determined sister in attendance.

"She loves you enough to do blood magic you stubborn old curmudgeon; you might at least give her a kiss" said Emmeline.

Alastor had been horrified, shocked, admiring, overcome and moved all in equal measure; it had been a long time since he had cried, but now he did.

Dumbledore was duly fetched and he performed various spells that improved the chances of Abigail's blood sacrifice working properly; though she had probably done enough. Alastor's missing leg could not be re-grown since it was the result of a cursed wound; but a replacement given with love and sacrifice negated all curse. And it would become his own soon enough, matching the other as it joined properly. Dumbledore just speeded it up a little. Abigail would be in severe pain over night, but the choice of potions she had made were essentially correct. He moved them both to the sick bay where Abigail was scolded by Madam Pomfrey for being as bad as Abraxus Malfoy.

"Not quite" said Abigail through a haze of pain killer "At least I didn't have to wait for Alastor to die."

In the face of such proven love, Alastor had given in; and he married Abigail quietly and they were to move into a house in the Orme Court neighbourhood, since he felt a more settled life was necessary for a wife. He readily agreed to take Abigail's son as his own, and also Salazar's half-elven half sister Rose as a daughter.

Abigail announced proudly to Krait later that she was expecting in May of the next year.

"Quick work" murmured Krait "Not that I can talk; and I wish you the best!"

There were new ones to take down Diagon Alley of course; Lydia Snape was starting this year, and her cousin, Julia Malfoy, daughter of the vet, Vladimir Malfoy. Helga Von Strang was also a ward of the Snapes; and Stoyan Krumm was very much under David's protection. The marauders had two children they considered their own responsibilities; Uschi Heinz, sister of Karl, whom they had protected; and Cressida Blunt whose mother Wendy employed, whose plight they had come upon the previous year. Leo Black-Weasley was Lynx's little brother, whom she glumly introduced as 'a pain' but was plainly very fond of; and another sister of Kinat's, Arjeela was also starting. David felt too some responsibility towards Chad Fenwick, brother of Fenella, whom she had never met; and awaited with some interest – and not a little trepidation – the meeting with Amadeo Hero Lockhart. There would too, he knew, be another of Colin Weasley's siblings; Theo was at least, he thought, the youngest; another granddaughter of Madam Spikenard, and –as if one wasn't bad enough – another Baddock. Of course he might be a horse of a different kettle of fish, as Krait mixed her metaphors to put it, as Romulus had been so different to his brother Mordred. But then again he might not.

Diagon Alley was much as usual; noisy and confused with harassed parents.

There was only one muggle-born this year; a boy called Stuart Markham, but he knew the score since his cousin Kyle had just left Hogwarts with six good NEWTs and a good record as a Gryffindor Prefect. David had liked him and was glad to meet Stuart and his family since his older brother was transferring to Rowan House and his younger brother would start there in a year's time. Stuart seemed as serious as his cousin who, according to classmate Ian Kell had to be a Gryffindor because he was too clever to be a Huffer and too nice to be a Ravenclaw. Stuart's brother Blair seemed to be as happy to be going to Rowan House as he might be anywhere, but glad that the untalented siblings of muggle born should have their rights seen to. David thought him a bit stuffy; but it took all sorts. He knew another child due to start Rowan House, young Imogen Tuthill, less resentful of Ross and Freya's place in Hogwarts to have a chance to learn about what they were doing.

The places available in Rowan House had been extended to accept Goblins not yet proven talented enough for Hogwarts and also as day students for London dwelling goblins. Numbers were to start small; but would grow no doubt, especially with the choice of muggle and wizarding qualifications available, higher level students of OWLs or even NEWTs to travel by gate if need be for extra classes at Hogwarts. It would be very flexible at first; there were so many imponderables as yet, and there was no guarantee that it would even work out.

David was confident that it would work.

There was a brief bit of excitement in Diagon Alley caused by the marauders when they found a House Elf being badly treated by his mistress; she had the elf piled high with packages and was jinxing him painfully for being slow. Abraxus stripped off a sock and wrapped it in the shop paper that had been round a purchase made for young Uschi, and ran after the witch.

"Your elf I believe dropped this" he said politely.

She let fly a stinging hex at the elf and thrust the parcel at him. He gave Abraxus a resentful look; and Abraxus winked.

"Open it" he mouthed.

The elf did so.

"Mistress has given Diccy a sock!" he said, his ears going up and a grin spreading across his face. "Diccy is free; Mistress can carry her own baggage!" whereupon he dropped the lot unceremoniously all over the ground.

The witch rounded on Abraxus shrieking and letting fly with jinx after jinx; which Abraxus met with folded arms, wordlessly wandlessly deflecting them before they even emerged from her wand. She finally took in the glowing scar and his imperturbable scorn and faltered.

"Trouble, Abrax?" Lucius Malfoy's voice sounded.

"None at all, thank you Uncle Lucius" said Abraxus "Just an old baggage who dropped her other baggage. She has no manners, but the lower orders rarely do of course."

"Quite" said Lucius. "Get yourself out of here madam; before I report you for assault."

She muttered and started to gather her packages as best she might.

"Neat" said a small boy's voice "To trick her into freeing that poor elf – I say you are WELL cool!"

Abraxus turned.

The boy had long, golden curls, huge blue eyes with long smoky lashes and only his male attire marked him as a boy so pretty was he.

"Crumbs!" said Abraxus "What makes me think you might be the notorious Amadeo Hero Lockhart?"

"Notorious?" the boy brightened "That's way better than famous! Have you actually heard of me then, a big boy like you?"

"Your cousin Precious – or Pris as she prefers – has been sounding off about the spoilt mummy's darling spoiling her life by coming to school" said Abraxus dryly.

"I say! I'll have to apologise to her for getting that impression – though as she's only seen me with mummy I guess it's not really difficult to understand. I love mummy but she's a bit…you know. I say, Pris isn't a prig is she?"

"Not last time I noticed" said Abraxus "Last time I saw her I threatened her with lines for illegal jinxing blatantly in the train corridor only I couldn't be bothered to read them over the holidays."

"EXCELLENT!" said Amadeo, eyes gleaming "I really plan to set out to enjoy myself at school away from mummy, I shall be able to get as dirty as I like and slide down banisters and try spells that aren't quite nice!"

"Heh, you'll do" said Abraxus. "Let me introduce you to Lynx and her brother who's now starting too…."

"Diccy will come" said the house elf gaily "Diccy will work as a free elf at Hogwarts with famous Dobby and help the NICE boys. Who is Diccy talking to?"

"I'm Abraxus Malfoy, that is my twin Hawke over there. This small horror is Amadeo Lockhart – crumbs what a moniker, we'll have to find you a nickname – and we'll be glad to have you at Hogwarts, or if you like my mum sponsors a team of freelance elves who hire out."

"Diccy will come and serve Mr Abraxus and Mr Hawke because he is his twin and do jobs for Mr Amadeo" said Diccy firmly.

"Diccy will also learn to talk like a free person" said Abraxus. "Talk to Sirri and Beloc. C'mon then, let's get you some cool gear to wear."

oOoOo

David stood at the platform as was his custom, with Lionel Dell; and some of Dell's friends milled around.

"I heard Severus had a long chat with you about Blood Magic" said David.

"Yes, it was half way between a severe ticking off and telling me how to handle it" said Dell. "The latter was scarier than the first."

"It's scary" said David "I think he was a little concerned that you had rushed into it."

"He said, if I hadn't done it for the purest of motives – to help Ross, and to involve others purely to spread the risk, my soul might have been in danger" said Dell soberly. "He stared into my eyes while he asked my reasons; was that legilimensy?"

"Yes; he doesn't use it lightly, but for that he had to look into your soul" said David. "I told him I believed you acted from the purest of motives; and he said that he believed me, but he had to check there was nothing in there that had been damaged."

"Thanks for vouching for me Fraser."

"You're welcome; I've always liked you, even when I haven't liked some of the things you were doing and saying. One day you'll be a great wizard and your group will back you. But it's not something to be generally encouraged. We only did it for Harry."

"Yes, so er, Severus said; he said we were to swear ourselves to silence unless we felt truly that someone else ought to be blooded in. He didn't say we couldn't blood anyone else in; and – and I've made up my quarrels with my cousin Gregory; and I'd like him in. He'll be at Rowan House. Grigs is all right. Fraser, are we going to have the Hat declare if people should be in Rowan alongside the other houses?"

David was startled.

"I don't think it had been discussed…the idea was that those who appeared in the book came to Hogwarts and….. well in the currently still uncertain political climate we weren't planning on taking at Hogwarts every goblin who could use magic, only the best, to build up positive public opinion you see. It's unfair of course, but for the greater long term gain for goblins, it seemed best. Otherwise we'll end up perhaps with Hufflepuff full of adequate goblins who may not be as….reasonable as the ones we already have."

Dell nodded.

"I see. That makes sense I guess, though it's a bit hard lines for the rest…still, they can take OWLs through Rowan and learn wand use; and that's the real bone of contention, isn't it, wand use?"

"It is. And goblins are just like everyone else which is to say that once allowed to own wands, nine out of ten are too lazy to either avail themselves of that or if they do too pursue training in their use. Humans are the same" he added dryly.

"Yes; Imogen Tuthill is somewhat satisfied to be peering into the world her brother and sister inhabit, but I shan't have any urge to blood her to bring up her talent" said Dell "She whines; and she'd only want it to say she's got it, she ain't a hard worker like Ross and Freya."

"People are people; I'm glad you've learned that" said David.

"Yes; it's quite straightforward when you finally get there" said Dell "Well it was finally for me, you knew all along…"

"Oh I think you made it pretty quickly really…. It took Lucius until he realised Tom Riddle had used and manipulated him. Some people never get it; or Tom Riddle would never have been Voldemort" said David. "He never felt remorse, even when Harry offered to help him to it….one sick puppy."

Dell shuddered.

"Good job HE never had a bloodgroup" he said. "Is that what Severus wanted to see, that I wouldn't become another Voldemort with as strong a power as you lot?"

"Partly I suspect" said David "It's a very heady feeling when everyone focuses and synchronises heartbeat and makes one of the team the focus of that; you feel like you could turn the whole world inside out on a whim if you wanted. That much power at your fingertips is scary but I could see it being addictive."

Dell nodded solemnly.

"Yes; I guess so" he said "We haven't done anything like that and if we do I should think it should be maintained for as short a time possible. Severus said he has been the focus and you feel briefly like a god; and that you have to be big enough to then step aside from that and give it up. He- he's a very special man, isn't he?"

"He is" said David. "And he tries so hard to pretend to be antisocial and cold. Less than he used to though, I assure you! But you see, Voldemort would never have had a bloodgroup – because group is the key word. It isn't about drawing on the others, it's about sharing, and that was something he would have hated to do. He could not accept that having a bit of Harry inside himself strengthened the bit of himself that was in Harry and was convinced that he was controlling Harry – largely because until Harry learned to block he could, because a more mature and experienced wizard is almost bound to be able to control a teenage kid, especially a scared and confused teenage kid. But Harry learned to control and use the images he was getting from Voldemort. It was more – and less – than a blood-joining; and I think you are old enough, responsible enough and intelligent enough to know what happened."

Quickly David sketched in the background of Voldemort's use of Horcruces; and how Harry was an accidental one, and how that had been to their advantage. Dell was horrified.

"You're right, he was one sick puppy!" he said in disgust. "And he didn't treat even his closest followers well…. I don't think I'm ever going to turn out like him!"

"No: if you were, Severus would probably have killed you" said David soberly. "No, I'm not joking: we don't need our kids going through what we went through. We – the closest in of us – don't see boggarts as anything but boggarts, their true form. There just ain't anything left to be so scary any more."

Dell whistled.

"Well, we're going to use it responsibly" he said.

"Then you'll be great allies; and you and I – or perhaps you and a marauder – should do a limited joining just for the connection" said David "A slit thumb; just to feel the blood-throb if there's trouble. I'll talk to the others about it."

"Thanks Fraser! Oh I say, there's Mary-Anne and she's on time and in the right uniform!"

David laughed.

"It IS a bit remarkable isn't it?" he said. "I wonder what of her kit she has forgotten?"

The children for Rowan House were to be coming on the train too to enable them to take part in the whole Hogwarts Express experience; it was only to happen at the beginning of a new year for them, however; other terms they would make their way back to their school by normal means of travel. The new year however, with new children, gave them the opportunity to make friends on the train in the wizarding world as well as in their own, more peripheral group. David reflected that using the hat might not be such a bad idea, so long as it was aware that they would have to be judiciously racist to start off with to avoid greater racism and prejudice later.

Krait had further ambitions for education however and had confided them to the bloodgroup.

With the arrests of Mordecai Filch, and earlier of the brothers Grubbe who offered kidnap as a service, she was buying up the three properties at that end of Obscura Alley. 66b was larger on the inside than on the out, and that, she believed, would make a perfect day school for those not rich enough to attend Hogwarts or talented enough to be offered a scholarship; here goblins and indigent youngsters could attend and be given at least one square meal a day into the bargain. The back way in meant that youngsters from the other parts of London could come easily and without going past the rest of the Alley. There were large communities of goblins in other places, Nottingham having one of the larger concentrations; but that was for the future. Nottingham Goblins would just have to, for the time being, set up funds for their most talented to go to either Rowan House or Hogwarts. Perhaps it would stimulate other wealthy people – goblin or human – to set up their own day schools.

David meanwhile was glad of an opportunity to meet some of the new children; he asked new ones as they came up to him if they were for Rowan or Hogwarts, and so met Evadne Monk, a cousin of Tom in Hufflepuff; Carl Johnson, another Hogwarts cousin; Herbert Bones, a squib from an old and respected family and bubbling to have the opportunity of a wizarding education. Then there were the Clough twins, cheerful tough kids from Umbrous lane who were to be day boys because a tube season ticket was cheaper than the fees to board; and of course the Tuthill child. There were older ones too, transferring often from muggle schools, an older Clough, another squib, Simon Diggory, glad of a chance not to let his famous relative Cedric down, and overwhelmed to meet the successor winner of the Triwizard; and two Goblin girls from Nottingham, Cholaka gan Gorjak and Arjelan Gan Nork, who both walked tall and refused to be intimidated amongst so many wizards; an older Johnson and an older Monk, and another pair of twins, Shona and Mike Moorcroft who lived at the 'wrong' end of Diagon Alley and were the children of two non-talented siblings of former Hogwarts students, with identical grins on their very black faces. And of course 'Grigs' Havelock, who grinned to see his cousin and was dragged away by Mary-Anne and co.

There were the Hogwarts kids too, a selection of Weasleys; and the newest one, Theo, managed to trip over his cauldron and put his tooth through his lip. David did a surreptitious healing spell and told him to go and sit down before he caused himself of anyone else any more damage. Leo Black-Weasley and Amadeo Lockhart had managed somehow to collect Chad Fenwick who seemed a nice ordinary little boy with a bright-eyed eager look; so he was someone David would not have to worry about. Save, perhaps, in how many lines he ended up setting him as a prefect's punishment. Stoyan was with his sister and the Marauders installed their kin and their other charges firmly together in a carriage together with the three little boys. Jade Snape and Mei Chang were both likely to check them out too, as well as the Junior Marauders, they should not have any trouble.

Then the newest of Dell's group turned up, little Heather Burns, in new and proper school uniform eager to join her new friends, but scared too and hesitating, for the half dozen chavvy kids following her and catcalling, jeering at her for 'going posh' and having 'posh' friends.

"You always talk posh and make like yer better nor us but yore mum and dad ain't nuffin' special!" called one big girl.

"Cor, look at them weirdos!" said one small boy, pointing at Kinat and sisters "Them ones is strange, look at their long noses and big feet!"

"Yeah, you got weirdos at your posh school Heather?" said a girl who bore a resemblance to the boy.

"Whaddya talking abaht, Roof?" said a big, hard faced girl "You and Davy don' know nuffin! Shurrup, we gorr' enough crap from this stinky stuck up cow wivvout you talkin' shit!"

The boy cringed as though expecting a blow and the girl huddled in on herself..

"Heather" said David evenly "You ever head of people who join bands of bullies because it avoids them getting bullied?"

"I suppose you mean Ruth Thomas there" said Heather "She could almost be nice before Sharon got her hooks in her. I guess that's her little brother."

"They see goblins" said David. "Shall we give them a chance?"

"All right" said Heather "What are you going to do?"

"I'M not going to do anything; you and your friends – Tuthills and co – are going to have an unseemly brawl while Lionel himself and you are going to grab those two and drag them through the barrier" said David "and THEN you tell them what's what and offer them Rowan House. They can go as day pupils so it won't cost much. If they won't listen, then I shall have to take them out and confund them. Game?"

Heather nodded willingly.

Dell's group were more than happy to mix it with the comprehensive school kids; they had been studying self defence at the MSHG and felt confident about brawls without wands!

David had only to leave it to the good offices of Lionel Dell to see the Thomas children settled on the train all right; or to fetch him!

He was slightly distracted by a small girl who came hesitantly around the brawl – which he would have to break up if the bullies weren't quickly routed – which they seemed to be being, horrified that posh kids could fight so hard – and approached him.

"Please, someone said I was to come here for the train for Rowan Tree School" she said. She was a tall skinny child for a first year – which by her childlike face she probably was – very pale with hair as pale as any Malfoy and with eyes like smoke.

"Rowan House, yes" said David "What's your name?"

"Anne Collins, sir."

"Any relation to Liatris Collins? She's already here."

The child shook her head.

"No sir. Only please, are there boys there too? My aunt wouldn't like that, she thinks it's a girls' school on account of the nuns and she thinks they'll teach me nice manners and good discipline."

David's eyes went flat and hard at the mention of nuns.

"This aunt of yours, she's your guardian?"

"Yes, my parents are dead. My aunt didn't want me in the first place so now I'm nearly eleven she thought boarding school was the best way to get rid of me. I didn't like it much when we visited, and I don't think Mr Petherick – that's my lawyer – liked it much either but maybe it was just 'cos I was scared that everyone seemed more cowed than mannerly, 'cos the kids here seem pretty jolly and I can't see any nunlings beating up nasty jeering types, is it the right school please?"

"It is now" said David taking a decision "Walk straight at that wall, don't hesitate or pause and when you get through ask for Lionel Dell and ask him to look after you, tell him you're for Rowan."

"All right" said Anne "I say, I think I'm having an adventure, which I never expected when I first got in the taxi!"

"Is your aunt at the station?"

Anne shook her head.

"Oh no, she had a guild meeting to go to or something, she's far too busy saving the souls of heathen children in other countries to have time for a real child, you know."

"Oh" said David "One of THOSE! Scram through the wall now my good kiddy!"

Anne duly scrammed with only a minor hesitation, and was soon lost to sight and safe from nuns.

Any of whose other charges might have potential swallowed in counter-ritual.

And how come those other two sensitives had not shown up?

David had an idea; he would ask them on the train.

It transpired, once the express was on its way that David's guess was right; the three children lived very close to an electrical sub station.

David had noticed when using ley lines to travel using geomancy that any that now passed though sub stations, power stations or even ran along power lines could be seriously disrupted; and it seemed too to disrupt other magic such as the Book of all potential students.

He would have to speak to Lucius about the possibility of setting up a ministry of electrical disruption to give warnings about travel disruption and make periodic trips to areas near sub stations to check out talented children. Those who moved would subsequently appear in the book, but if they lived there all their lives…. And who might know if constant exposure to electro-magnetism might not actually sap magical ability over time! It needed serious investigation!

And he would suggest Hermione Weasley be paid to do a study as she was not intending having any babies yet. With Arthur's support she should get a very efficient study done. David drafted a note to send by owl the moment he had time.

And he would have to confess to Professor Dumbledore that he had stolen three more children for the wizarding world and moreover planned to raid this Rowan Tree School to see if there were more.

Thank goodness for house elves; he could borrow Dobby, Winky and Diccy to go and spy!


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Nobody was intensely surprised that Cressida Blunt was a Gryffindor, nor Julia Malfoy, a no-nonsense sort of little girl who ran her father very efficiently and who looked upon the whole of life as an adventure awaiting to happen. And Kinat's sister Arjeela was expected to be a Gryff as much as any Weasley might. Lydia Snape was a surprise to some; but then Lydia and Jade were NOT as alike as some assumed, any more than Hawke and Abraxus were; and Abraxus welcomed a second of his cousins to his house! Lydia and Julia were fairly close friends, and were also on good terms with the other girls. Theo Weasley would have to hope he got on well with Stuart Markham the muggleborn boy, in the light of an excess of what Abraxus called a 'monstrous regiment of not-yet women'.

Slytherin had the mix the other way, more boys than girls, and it was no surprise that Leo Black-Weasley ended up there like his sister. So too did the younger Baddock boy, Leonard. Families known to the Blood Group were the Bullivant child, Crocosmia, a connection at some point to both Malfoys and Bulstrodes; and Priscilla Parkinson, cousin of Pansy, whom the younger Malfoys had already met socially and declared useful only for jinxing target practice.

Stoyan and Helga both ended up in Hufflepuff – the latter a little to the disappointment of Erich and Erwin, who had hoped their sister might be a Gryffindor too. It was no real surprise, though; for Helga was an unimaginative, stolid and happy child with a strong streak of duty; almost a Hufflepuff's Hufflepuff. As Zvetelina Krumm was already in Hufflepuff she was delighted for her little brother.

Amadeo Lockhart and Chad Fenwick were both Ravenclaws; and to the shock and not a little horror of others of Madam Spikenard's grandchildren, so was Daphne Spikenard.

"It's a bit like a Weasley going into Slytherin" said Daphne's oldest sister Jasmine with disgust. "Still, she's a bit of a prig so I guess the hat knows."

It took all of half the evening for Amadeo, Chad, and Leo to be inducted into Mei Chang's gang – as a matched set – and for Amadeo's name to be modified to the shortening 'Mad' which was thought to suit him very well.

Mei Chang's gang gained its first impot of lines before bedtime for scaling the north face of the main staircase.

That night was not destined to be quiet either.

Severus caught four young people emerging giggling from the gate cupboard that had a heavy lock on the other end.

The culprits were the two goblin girls, Simon Diggory, and Grigs Havelock.

"And WHAT may I ask, were you youngsters attempting to achieve?" asked Severus.

"Please, sir" said Arjelan "We wanted to see if we could get through so we could come to join in the early morning run that Grigs says his cousin told him about and we thought we'd explore a bit to find out the way"

"Well wandering around half the night isn't going to improve your early morning performance" said Severus, sternly. "How did you manage, by the way, to get through the locked door?"

"My father makes clockwork devices and is also a locksmith sir" said Arjelan.

Severus groaned.

"Oh no, not another one… as if Garjala wasn't bad enough with her clockwork devices! Come with me."

He led them down to Myrtle's loo and pointed at the first gate.

"Through there will take you to the cupboard under the stairs in Rowan House. It has a bad feeling; it used to be a punishment cupboard when the place was an orphanage. Live with it. You may come back that way at oh-five-thirty hours for the morning run, this is where we convene. I will wait here for a few minutes in case someone has locked the other cupboard…. It shouldn't have a lock on it, we took it off."

They had also removed the fiery surround of the magic door in case any Rowan House children involved in hide-and-seek came through it in curiosity; for those who had talent enough to be moved into Hogwarts should be noticed soon enough and duly transferred. It was part of David's responsibility to pick them out, and Krait's too as she taught potions and DADA, the latter to older students only for the time being.

The four duly turned up for the run, bringing the three children David had usurped, and Liatris Collins with whom Anne had made friends as a namesake, albeit that Liatris was a year older. Anne had cheerfully explained that she could forge both her aunt's signature and her solicitor's, and that she would write to Rowan Tree School telling them there had been a change of plan. It was no earthly point approaching her aunt as she was not hardly likely to even believe in magic let alone permit her niece to have anything to do with it. As for the other two, Dumbledore himself had been to see Mr and Mrs Thomas who had been more upset that their children had been involved in a bullying gang than that they had some magical potential. Dumbledore was able to explain that both children had been so badly bullied by a boy called Brian and the girl Sharon that they joined the bullies to avoid too much pain; and Mr and Mrs Thomas, who knew the families involved decided that they could manage the fees for their children to board, since Rowan House was much cheaper than Hogwarts, which would remove them entirely from the bullies until they learned to find their own sense of self worth.

Dumbledore also learned that Mr Thomas was illiterate and that Davy too had reading trouble. The wizard had heard of dyslexia – as it went with high intelligence he often came upon it on potentially academic muggleborns written off as failures at school – and promptly passed his wand over Mr Thomas, curing the chemical imbalance and imbuing him immediately with a full knowledge of reading and writing.

He had an adoring fan on the spot.

Being able to read meant that Paul Thomas could hope for better than his current job as a window cleaner.

Dumbledore promised to do the same for Davy too; and even more Nancy and Paul Thomas were ready to go without to make sure their children stayed at a school where such marvellous things could occur.

Back at Hogwarts, Dell and gang took Grig's friends under their wing, the two goblin girls and Simon more than the others, since Heather was still wary of the Thomases.

Cholaka's father was a widower; his wife and several other family members had been among those messily killed by Voldemort; and she was mad keen to be a part of everything the MSHG stood for and fight other evil.

"I heard about these German creeps on the wireless; I want to fight them" she said. "They call us 'kobolds' over there and treat us even worse than we've ever been treated in England."

"Yes, my mum was killed by the ministry when she happened to be caught up in a protest she wasn't even taking part in" said Arjelan "Our dads are friends, Cholaka's and mine, and they've always believed in peaceful protest. Evil done in the name of law is still evil. And our ministry is good compared to the German one."

"Damn right" said Dell "I was an awful blood snob just because it was what was around, and I believed stuff until I saw for myself. I think you two should join our group; if you're game for a little danger."

They explained to the four about the blood group after swearing them to secrecy.

Grigs was mad keen.

He was already a sensitive, like Ross had been, and any chance to enhance that was a bonus! The girls too were more than ready if it gave them the chance to really make a difference. That they rather admired the handsome cousins, Lionel and Gregory, did perhaps influence their decisions!

Simon pulled a face.

"I don't think my family would much like me to be involved in blood magic" he said "I think they'd think it was letting them down. It may not be used for dark magic, but it's a bit…."

"Not even to overcome the squib block?" said Mary-Anne.

He shook his head.

"I'd rather have my family than risk losing their support" he said.

"You'll keep it quiet though?" said Dell.

"Unless I think it important to speak out" said Simon.

The three who were to join agreed to sneak back late that night; and Lionel had a quiet word with Severus about Simon Diggory's reservations.

"Hmm, good family, solid wizards, but in some ways that's solid bone from the neck up" said Severus. "He is however a brave lad to hold the courage of his convictions; and terribly Hufflepuff in his conformity. I'll place a small compulsion in him not to talk about it unless a situation arises I think is important; I'll not block the memory or he might be resentful that his friends draw away from him a bit without understanding why. Of course, it is possible too that your new members – and if you're bringing in three you should seek for a fifteenth – will end up transferred here. Those girls seem very able, what I've seen of them. And er, Grigs is going to be boosted. And if Simon is not boosted he will NOT end up here, though he'll probably still end up more capable than squibs are supposed to be. We plan to try to get squibs capable of using the floo network, producing basic potions and performing some personal grooming and cleaning charms. Muggle born muggles have learned all their lives alternate ways to do things and are less handicapped – they have electrical devices – but even so if sensitives can learn anything we plan to teach them to the limit of their capacity. Simon might change his mind; Hermione Granger did. And the two Weasleys who joined did have a lot of stick from their mother you know. Some people can take that better than others."

Lionel nodded.

"Thanks, sir" he said.

Alice had been keen to involve Hagrid in the blood group; and Lionel had a feeling that the more disparate people who were involved the better; after all the Order of the Phoenix and the main Blood Group included disparate people and that was their strength over blood snobs like the deatheaters who only saw one sort of right way.

Accordingly Alice spoke to Hagrid, explaining what they had done and asking if he would be their grown up support.

Hagrid had become very fond of Alice. Even when David had been absent doing other things in the holidays Alice had ridden across country on her broom, which she stored in an old bothy outside the village; or on Buckbeak if he came to visit.

She had never ridden Godrica, David's shy Gryphon friend who had delighted the young man by finally, once the hoards of children had left Hogwarts for the summer holiday, emerged from the Forbidden Forest and come up to see him and nudge him towards her back for a fly. David had cried he was so happy; once she overcame her agoraphobia he had expected her to fly away entirely, but Godrica had other ideas! She would permit Hagrid to handle her and Severus, though she was skittish with him; but only David was allowed on her back. Godrica was starting to accept Alice near her however, and Hagrid had been helping the two to get used to each other, as David was introducing Godrica to his beloved Ellie.

Alice had a way with beasts; and that, Hagrid appreciated.

What she outlined however shocked him.

"Ar, now that's a bit dodgy" he said "A bit dodgy indeed!"

"Nae, it's al' richt" said Alice "It was aye started for a pure purpose, tae help Ross; and we want to fight Odessa too. And we thoucht having a grown up would be a guid idea and ye're a cool sort of grown up you know."

"Dumbledore might not like it" said Hagrid "I know he sanctioned the blood group around Harry – ar, and they don't talk much about that neither! But another one?"

"We've had an awfu' load o' lectures frae Severus Snape ye ken, aboot how tae no' get oorselves in dark magic trouble" said Alice "He's no' opposed along that we're main carefu'. And we a' like ye weel."

Hagrid scratched his head noisily.

"Well if Severus Snape is all right with it…. Yer a good little girl Alice, I'd hate ter see yer in danger, if this'll help I'll do it."

He was firmly hugged.

A member of the other blood group had been thinking; and Erich raised an idea.

"I was thinking about little Tala Ulwin" he said "It's so unfair that she should be born a werewolf and without even a father to explain how to deal with it, like Teddy had Moonie has his dad to explain and help….and if my idea works we might be able to help them too."

"Go on" said Sirius "Anything that'll help Remus is good in my book."

"It wouldn't work for muggles of course because of antibody problems; but I thought that if we, with a ritual, changed all her blood – I'm happy to use mine – it might carry away the problem. And if I catch it, I just won't be part of future blooding. You can feed me blood replenishing potions. Now, when that's done, it might be that there's then in her blood and maybe mine a specific antidote to lycanthropy. If not, but it cures her, Padfoot might be prepared to do the same for Remus."

"Damn right I would" said Sirius.

"I think that a wolfsbane potion should be combined with the blood replenishing potion" said Severus. "Give Krait and me a few weeks to research it and to pick an arithmantically auspicious time. And find out if the child is willing to take such a risk. I ought to talk to her mother."

Erich snorted.

"I met her mother over the holidays; weak and feeble don't even begin to describe her, and I speak not of the physical. She of the wet and whining kind of female is" the Germanic idiom crept back at his agitation "The sort who unable is to make a decision."

"Fine; we'll ignore her" said Krait. "You mean if she later finds out she'd say 'Eow dear, Tala, you didn't ought to of done that, don't do it again'" she made her voice whine in a monotone.

"Exactly" said Erich. "I to Tala have made a commitment to be her guardian."

"We'll get to work right away" said Krait "At least we're getting further on with the house elf dilemma with the co-operation of Dell's family elf and Lucius' minions; and it was clever too, Erich, to remember the ones in your father's castle, and to claim them now you are over seventeen."

"They're a bit like poor Kreacher was" said Erich "But working I am on that."

"Kreacher's all right" said Sirius "- sorry Kreacher, I wasn't summoning you, I was just saying you're a good chap and wondering if you'd mind helping Erich to teach his elves to accept being treated well" he added as the elf appeared out of nowhere on the mention of his name.

The elderly elf cracked his knuckles horribly and beamed.

"Kreacher will always help Master's friends" he said "Master's friends have more nobility than deatheater types even when they are mudbloods."

This was enough of an improvement in attitude that nobody bothered to complain about the terminology. Sirius actually grinned.

"Why, Kreacher, you're getting very independent! I believe at one point I forbade you to use that term but you are capable of doing so – heh, and you don't even have the urge to punish yourself now so I can mention it without feeling guilty because of what it might make you do."

Kreacher observed him inscrutably.

"Master will have his joke" he squeaked rustily "Kreacher chooses not to punish himself because Kreacher reminds Master that the Black family were pure blood and were not always friends of evil!"

"Well they never were exactly the most pleasant" said Sirius "but we'll let that go. If you'll get these ruddy German elves a bit more inclined to question the motives of orders it'd help; as you learned to recognise that my brother was never unreasonable to you; as I try not to be."

"Master is kind. Kreacher loves Master as much as he loved master Regulus" said the old elf softly, fingering the locket he never took off, the one Regulus Black had used to substitute for the horcrux.

Sirius, embarrassed, gently and affectionately tweaked the old elf's ear.

"I wasn't joking about feeling guilty over you punishing yourself you know Kreacher" he said "To permit such is in my mind ignoble and unworthy of any who would be arbiters of society; it implies we are too feeble to keep discipline in our own home if we have to have a magically implanted urge that our powerful little servants should punish themselves for even disliking us. Do you think it is right for such weak and feeble creatures to hold such sway?"

Kreacher considered.

"Kreacher had not considered it in that light before" he said "Master is right; master is usually right. This implanted urge weakens wizards and that makes house elves responsible for damaging their masters, but the spells of the masters have made them responsible. So the masters have weakened themselves. This is not good for masters or elves."

"Precisely" said Sirius.

"Kreacher will talk to the German elves; then Kreacher will talk to free elves of the unseelie court. Kreacher knows a few" said the elf "Kreacher will find out what they know about compulsions."

"Y'know Kreacher, you're a damned useful fellow to have around" said Sirius.

Kreacher looked very pleased.

Tala listened wide-eyed as Erich described the ritual he proposed.

"But will it not risk YOU becoming a werewolf?" she asked.

Erich shrugged.

"I that risk will gladly take to have hope of freeing you your blood taint" he said "Is not my father the pre-eminent potioneer in all the world? And then too on me can he experiment if it does not work and I gladly will be experimented on for those who are less strong. If a werewolf I become, handle it I shall. I have a loving family and to them, no difference will it make. There are other children who should not werewolves be; we can perhaps a difference make."

"Then I will do all I can. Will – will it hurt much?"

"It will hurt some I think" said Erich "We will try to have the pain as little as possible. My father can make you sleep through it if it hurts much."

"Thank you" said Tala "I- I'm afraid of the pain there must be changing shape every month; I can take some pain if it stops that."

"You are a brave good little madchen, mein voglein" said Erich.

"What is that?"

"Madchen – it is maiden, young girl. And I call you a birdling because you are as bright and merry as a little singing bird" said Erich.

"I like that" said Tala.

Hagrid met with the new friends of Dell and co and smiled nervously.

"If yer changed yer minds and don't want me after all, I can go away" he said.

"We want you, Hagrid" said Lionel. "You're one of life's nice people and if we end up backing the other group, or being their reserve team because they're off fighting ODESSA or we're the ones who get to go to the fight because they're needed here, there's nobody I reckon we'd rather have at our backs than you. It's a big step though; YOU may not want to be a part of us, to feel out very presence in your bones to know some of what we know."

"Ar, maybe I'll get cleverer then" said Hagrid "I've always wondered what it was like."

"You are clever, Hagrid" said Alice.

"You may find your wandlore improves; we may find our instincts with beasts improve" said Lionel "we all share a little bit of each other. It isn't a total sharing; but we all grow stronger from each other. Ross, are you keeping count of the time?"

"Two minutes" said Ross.

"Ready your knives then people" said Lionel "And when Ross nods, slit your palms and mingle each with each other, old group with new ones, new ones with old group and each other, and say 'all for one and one for all' when we've done."

"What you said about Ross makes me think of a goblin joke about wizards" said Arjelan "Of the 'I'll hold this still and you take the hammer and when I nod my head you hit it' variety….."

"Tell it in full later" said Lionel "I make it coming up to countdown…."

Ross said,

"Ten….nine…." and counted down to zero, then nodded his head.

The slitting was accompanied by a few squeaks from some of the girls, then they were solemnly exchanging grasps all around to mingle the blood.

"Cor it do feel funny" said Hagrid.

"Lionel are we supposed to feel weak and rather queer?" said Grigs.

"Yes" said Lionel "And I asked Professor Snape about that too, he says it's the reaction to performing ritual magic because it requires energy to forge a blood bond and the energy must needs be drawn from the body and spirit of each participant leading to a concomitant lassitude. I think I remembered all the jaw crack words."

"I love listening to Professor Snape" said Tamsin "Especially when he's in a fearful bate with someone else, it's better than telly."

"It's less good when it's you he's in a fearful bate with" said Lionel with feeling.

"Ar, I'll agree with that" said Hagrid with equal feeling. "Yer right, Lionel, lad, I feel as weak as a human!"

"At least it's decent weather now" said Tim "Last time we did this the snow was thick on the ground and we sat in it getting wet and cold and unable to move for to save ourselves from a dose of Pepperup potion."

"I like pepperup potion" said Mary-Anne. "I managed to fake three colds last year to get some."

"You're weird though" said Melody "I don't MIND it but I'd not go out of my way to get some."

"I'll brew you some if you like, Mary-Anne" said Callum "If Cynner will help me; it's not hard, and it won't do you any harm. Aksherly" he added "The muggles have cough candy; I'll see if I can't turn pepperup potion into sweeties."

"Neat!" said Mary-Anne.

Hagrid recovered first; and firmly carried Cynthia and Melody, the two delicate ones, back to the school while Lionel scouted ahead to keep cave.

He reported back,

"Filch is on the warpath, but I'll stage a diversion!" and glided on in.

He had also seen Malcolm Baddock.

"Hey, Baddock, aren't you afraid to be out on your own?" he called "A new weevil girl might catch you and jinx you, you know!"

"I'll FIGHT you for that you snotty brat!" called Baddock, fairly predictable, whipping out his wand.

Dell was nothing loath.

It was better for only one of his group to get a detention than all, and this way he got to hurt Baddock too, which was always an advantage.

Baddock was smarting under a ministry warning after a VERY nasty interview with Arthur Weasley over suggesting Romanian orphans for muggle trafficking; and was spoiling for a fight.

And Argus Filch, who loathed Baddock for his unkind comments about squibs waited to see if Lionel could best him before breaking up the fight.

Lionel made very short work of Baddock; he was talented at wand work at the best of times and practise in the MSHG and duelling clubs made him more than capable of knocking Baddock's best efforts aside.

Baddock found himself hoisted in the air by one ankle and his clothing changed in very short order to resemble Peeves' loud and repellent garments, save of a female variety and with baggy tartan bloomers.

"Ar now, that'll do young varmints, duelling in the corridors like that!" Argus emerged, rubbing his hands together with glee.

"Oh Mr Filch I'm sorry to cause you concern" said Lionel "Shall I report myself to Fraser?"

Argus had learned much from having been treated kindly by Krait; and he was learning which children would behave honourably and which would not, and that it was not always a mere matter of their house. Lionel had always been polite to him; whatever his views on Muggles or goblins had once been, Lionel had always held deep sympathy for squibs and respect that they functioned at all in the wizarding world.

"Yes Mr Dell you do that; and ask him to send someone down to release this one" said Filch.

"I'll try to remember sir" said Dell with an impish grin.

"You young limb!" said Filch, grinning evilly.

oOoOo

David sighed.

"Come in" he said. "Dell?"

"I've come to report myself Fraser" said Dell. David blinked.

"What have you been up to? It's only the second night!"

"Duelling in the corridor, Fraser; I couldn't splinch Baddock like Snape One did so I heaved him up by the ankle and gave him some amusing attire."

"What SORT of amusing attire?"

Lionel described it in full and excruciating detail. David swallowed hard on a chuckle.

"Why were you duelling in the corridor?"

"The official reason or the real one?"

"Give me the official reason first then I'll hear the other one off the record"

"The official reason is we met and had words and it turned to duelling; which might have happened anyway only I forced the issue a little" said Lionel "I wanted a diversion to get my blood group in with the new ones. As you do. Mr Filch was around. Oh and I said I'd try to remember to ask you to get Baddock down."

"I see" said David. "Well, I guess you'd better find a poem about duelling and copy it out twice for me."

"Yes Fraser; thanks"

David regarded the upended view of Baddock, swearing and cursing while Argus Filch pointed and laughed. Peeves had turned up and was making what he considered appropriate comments too. David pointed his wand at Peeves.

"Hoppit" he said "You're smutty."

Peeves respected David Fraser. He was capable of dealing out some very nasty jinxes; but was also fair enough if other humans were baiting him, Peeves. He hopped it.

David made a negligent gesture and Baddock tumbled to the floor properly attired and still swearing; until a langlock took care of that.

"Fine example for an upper sixth to be duelling in a corridor" said David coldly "You will for that take the same punishment as Dell; find me a poem about duelling and copy it out twice. For swearing at a member of staff – and this is not the first time you've been in trouble over that – I think you need vocabulary practise. You will report in every leisure period to Mr Filch who will find you a job – a messy smelly job – beginning with each letter of the alphabet. I'll help you be creative if you like Mr Filch."

"Ar, thank you Mr Fraser" said Filch who was beginning to wonder if thinking of all that was almost as bad a punishment for him!

"I think we can stretch a point with difficult letters like X to be eXtract blockages from the loo" said David.

Argus laughed nastily; Baddock could only make bubbling noises.

And David was furious with Baddock; in all his years the boy had not learned to not rise to taunting – even the fairly skilled taunting of a clever boy like Lionel ought to be below the notice of a sixth former – nor had he learned not to swear in school. He was overall the worst of bad examples but yet never did anything bad enough to be expelled for.

And he, old enough to know better, would also whine about his punishment. It was hard not to compare him to young Dell who took his punishments without complaint, and accepted paying for his lawless activities.

And he David had a class tomorrow at Rowan House to prepare for and could have done without interruption!

The vicissitudes of being head boy of course.

He and Argus had to come up with the jobs to be performed to; and David sighed and set to that first while Argus made a cup of tea. The jobs were:

A – all lost property to be listed

B – brooms to be tidied and cleaned

C – clean the classrooms

D – dust the tops of all the doors

E – examine all chairs in case repairs were needed

F – find any lost property already left about

G – graffiti on desks and in toilets needs scrubbing off

H – hospital wing needs cleaning

I – ink stains to be removed

J – jinx formulae in broom shed to be scrubbed off

K – kneazles to be combed [a worse job for a bully who was likely to get scratched]

L –lavatories to be cleaned

M – mud to be swept up

N – necessary cleaning duties [a bit of a catch all]

O – offices, staff, to be cleaned

P – polishing silver

Q – quires of paper to be stacked

R – robes to be carried for house elves in laundry

S – sundry tasks [another catchall]

T – tables to be rubbed down with sand paper

U – underwear to be washed in the laundry

V – varnishing the tables

W – washing in the laundry

X – eXtract any blockages from drains

Y – yawningly dull copying work of the punishment book

Z – zombies, feed the ghouls in the attics. [As close as David could get]

And that, thought David as Filch chortled over the list, ought to keep Baddock occupied until the end of term.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

David enjoyed his first lesson teaching.

He decided that his first lesson would be to introduce the beasts and beings of the magical world and discuss the definitions of what was a beast and what was a being and let the class debate the foolishness of the various attempts to classify in the past.

The group would be introduced to Newt Scamander's excellent little book. This would then lead to the lesson of the next few weeks that would cover the social inequalities arising from the confusions in classifications and would give an overview of history touching on the Goblin Rebellions and Giant Wars as examples of how misunderstanding and unfairness lead to unnecessary wars.

This would then lead to a discussion of politics and the changing and more enlightened policies of modern times following the second Wizarding War. Wizarding law, customs and manners followed on nicely from this; and discussion on the necessity of confunding muggles who saw too much, which would also be open to some discussion. The views of muggle relatives would be valuable to put to the ministry. After this, they would return to studies of Newt Scamander, and hopefully have an opportunity to see some magical beasts too as an end of term treat. David was thinking about a cage full of fairies, a few garden gnomes and a few bowtruckles. They would study magical creatures more extensively as a second year course.

The visit to Diagon Alley was to be an extra, that would be scheduled around the other staff and David's own timetable.

Meanwhile in another period Krait would be discussing with the children the disciplines studied at Hogwarts and initially testing students for potential with potion making practicals and wand use, in case any had been missed as scholarship material or, if nominally muggles and well enough off, as paid for students at Hogwarts. This lesson would include a warning not to try to make any potions unless issued with a certificate of permission to study by Krait; since there had to be that magical catalyst to make a potion a potion, not a mess of ingredients. Those not creamed off for Hogwarts would continue to learn theory to recognise the meanings of commonly mentioned spells and potions, and descriptions of the effects to be recognised.

In addition the children would cover arithmancy, from the second year would learn Wizarding History and may also study as electives from the third year Ancient Runes, Care of Magical Beasts and Herbology. They would study muggle subjects throughout.

David enjoyed the stimulation of the class discussion; they were on the whole an intelligent bunch, and he made sure to draw out the little ones as he had all ages for this first term at least. Not that Arjelan and Cholaka needed much drawing out! They were second years but prepared to debate a big boy like Paul Johnson, only two years younger than David himself. Most of those of muggleborn relatives were prepared to see the goblin viewpoint; the Cloughs and the Moorcrofts lived closely to goblins and were more prepared than many to look on them as just people; though Shona Moorcroft pointed out that some wizards in poor neighbourhoods could be more racist than any, just so they had someone to look down on.

"Us, we were brought up to be neighbourly because what you give you get back" said her brother.

They were a nice pair.

It was exhausting though; nobody had warned him how tiring teaching could be, having all the time to be ready to answer questions and be careful to do so unambiguously and without prejudice; and to have to admit sometimes 'I don't know' and promise to try to find out!

When he walked back into Hogwarts into a water fight led – he thought – by Mad Lockhart, and gleefully helped along by Peeves he very nearly walked back through the cupboard again.

Instead he disrupted the youthful water warriors by the expedient of Draco's spell turning water to soap; causing most of them to skid and fall giggling to the floor.

"Ah, I see you think the floors need cleaning" said David genially "Mr Lockhart, you may ask Mr Filch for proper scrubbing brushes and cloths and get this floor looking like you could eat your supper off it. Mr Crabbe, no sneaking off, I can see exactly who is here, and Peeves is going to watch you and report if anyone slopes off. And that person will be writing me a substantial impot. Very good, carry on!"

"The thing about Fraser" sighed Lynx "Is that he's tough but he's fair."

oOoOo

The Slytherin had been having some trouble with Crocosmia Bullivant; her mother had sent a long letter to her house head - making the assumption that she would be in Slytherin by addressing it to Severus Snape -telling him to be sure that her little Crocosmia had a single room as she was too well bred and delicate to have to mix in with the common herd, and to be sure she got to bed early and got enough sleep.

Severus returned the letter with the scrawled legend,

"What is this female you write to me about, a pupil at Hogwarts or a spoiled lap dog? Try not to look even stupider than you were at school, Celestina, the only kid in the class even non Slytherin to think that poisonous snakes had stings. I do NOT want to hear from you again."

Crocosmia was a spoiled brat; she was rude and arrogant.

She was a hard enough worker in class and seemed to enjoy an academic challenge – which was a good sign – but she fell out with Lydia Snape quite quickly over a Malfoy-connected girl being in Gryffindor. Crocosmia started putting it about that Lydia was next door to being a squib to be in an inferior house, which got little sympathy if any of her elders caught her; and which raised the ire of the Bloody Baron for whom Lydia was a prime favourite. Sir Edward might have been disappointed that Lydia was not in his house but she was still his kin and he came and scowled at Crocosmia when she was saying disparaging things about Lydia.

Crocosmia called him a stupid old ghost and told him to get lost.

She was regretting this by the time he had walked through her a few times.

Krait decided to nip the silliness in the bud and asked Crocosmia to explain what constituted superior. Finding this was belonging to the right family she pursued the theme of why is a family a right family and how far back does one go. Crocosmia had little idea of real history.

Krait pulled her locket out from inside her gown.

"Know who made that?" she asked. Crocosmia shook her head.

"It belonged to Salazar Slytherin and was made either by him or to his order" said Krait. "It's mine by rights through descent of the eldest child. Does that, with older Blood than any newcomer like a Bullivant make me better than you?"

"I – er, yes, Ma'am I suppose it does" said Crocosmia.

"Well you have the courage of your convictions at least" said Krait. "I'm also Malfoy. As a Malfoy I'm proud to be related to the first part goblin ever to be at Hogwarts; we are so old a family we can ignore other people's ideas of social convention in such respects. That is true. But it does not make me necessarily better. Would my father be better than anyone else too? You nod. My father was Voldemort. I helped kill him because I thought he was an unmitigated little creep. He was a half blood you know; which restored the intellect to my line since his mother, my poor little grandmamma, was not bright; and her father was barking mad. But he was a pure blood you know; heir of Slytherin. Am I getting through to you my good kiddie that blood is not always everything?"

"Why was he er, barking?"

"Inbreeding. That was a good question, by the way. To much inbreeding without fresh outside blood leads to any weaknesses – like insanity – becoming increased. The Black family have hot tempers, the Malfoys are pale and blonde – though that seems to hold true through mixes with any one else even muggles, even as you have Malfoy looks with a Bulstrode mother. Bulstrodes are heavy set and often dark. Princes are cadaverous with lank black hair and aquiline noses. The wizarding world had been carefully breeding back into itself long enough these things have got set; as have other less desirable characteristics. Bulstrode women have a tendency to broom-itch. Princes are often born with hump backs and club feet. Easy to put right but still in the genes…. I think you need a course in simple genetics, my child."

Crocosmia was fascinated.

Krait gave her extra books and left her to study for herself.

Solving blood snobbery with genetics lessons might be worth trying with others.

oOo

The Slytherin first years were not nice.

Leonard Baddock was teasing Leo over his slight stutter and aping him; and Krait pretended not to see Baddock Two go down under a pile of other first years as she passed by a classroom.

And then Crocosmia Bullivant came to see her in tears because her genetics book was torn apart.

"Please Madam Malfoy, I didn't do it" she said "well, I suppose I did kind of because I tried to stop it being pulled away."

"I see" said Krait "No I don't blame you. Common room or dorm fight?"

"Dorm" said Crocosmia.

"Very well; it's easy to mend: _episkey_" said Krait, mending the torn book. "I think maybe you don't entirely fit into that dormitory. We'll put another bed in with the second years; they can put up with being cramped. Four of the five of them are all right; and if the fifth complains we'll give her all the room she wants with Priscilla Parkinson and Ashleigh Cooper. Go and ask Jade Snape – ah, have you apologised to Lydia yet for being a prat?"

"No Madam Malfoy"

"Then I suggest you do that, fairly publicly – like the initial comments – and then ask Jade Snape to help you move your things into her dorm. You can ask her too about the songs the hat was singing about interhouse co-operation about the time the Malfoy twins went into different houses, when we were winding up to fight Voldemort too. Jade counts her friends from all four houses; not necessarily all in her own year but she's quite ecumenical. If we hadn't combined, we wouldn't have won. There's no BEST house; each has its strengths – and weaknesses. And our house's weakness is that it attracts those who have ambition but very little character or ability, and so they bully as the only means they know to make themselves look big. Gryffindors attract the brave and noble; some of whom forget to engage brain before hitting the floor running. Hufflepuffs are hard working, loyal and dutiful, perfect followers; and some of them are a little dim or stuffy. Ravenclaws are brilliant academically or artistically but being clever is not much help if you spend all winter in the san because you were too busy thinking about an arithmantic point to put on slippers or dressing-gown to go to the loo in the night with five degrees of frost. They, like us, tend to arrogance too; both our houses would do well to take pride in our abilities without slipping into the arrogance that robs us of thought and so makes our respective types of cleverness irrelevant. Sorry, my dear, lecture over!"

"Thank you for explaining it so clearly, Madam Malfoy" said Crocosmia earnestly. "I'll go and see Lydia now and tell her I've let my arrogance make me a prat."

"You do that" said Krait, smiling gently.

She'd do. An encouraging thought with an unpleasant interview to come.

oOoOo

Priscilla Parkinson sneered and Ashleigh Cooper scowled.

"I'd like to know which one of you tore my book" said Krait quietly "I know Miss Bullivant took it upstairs; so it had to be one of you two. She would not sneak so I have to find out by other means."

"I wasn't interested in her stupid book" said Ashleigh Cooper

"SNEAK!" said Priscilla Parkinson.

"Well, I have my answer" said Krait "You may go, Miss Cooper; though I note with interest your description of my book. I suspect somehow you missed the personal pronoun earlier or you might have guarded your tongue more closely" she watched the girl pale slightly as she left. Cooper was the child of a wizard who was feuding with his brother and it could not be comfortable to have an uncle who wrote for legal advice to the 'Daily Prophet' to ask if the ministry was likely to turn a blind eye if he kidnapped his brother's children and turned them into blood-sucking ferrets. As there were currently six young Coopers a neighbour might be forgiven for wishful thinking along those lines but for an uncle to think it reasonable seemed rather harsh. Ashleigh was the oldest and Krait wondered how much she was being damaged by this feuding. However, Priscilla was her immediate concern. The girl looked less like a pug than her cousin; but with her hard face and pugnacious jaw it was hard to imagine her ever having baby names like Prissy or Cilly. Krait spoke again.

"Miss Parkinson; your accusation of sneaking is effectively an admission. I was wondering if you had anything to say to me."

Parkinson stared.

"What is there to say?" she said aggressively "You know I pulled it off her and the silly cow hung on to it."

"Well I should have thought that anyone who considered themselves well bred would be finding something to say in terms of an apology to the owner of property she had damaged" said Krait coldly "regardless of whether she thought it partly the fault of someone who, having been loaned something, felt it proper to try to prevent another taking it away from the custody into which it had been entrusted. However you are obviously too ill bred to think of common courtesy; I suppose I should not have been surprised. I try not to judge on family affiliation but I have noted a certain lack of breeding in the Parkinson clan that has less to do with blood status and more to do with a distinctly vulgar outlook and an excess of turpitude. As you feel like being so rude and belligerent into the bargain I fear that as well as expecting you to make me a written apology for damaging my book, of not less than six lines of writing I shall expect from you, in your best hand, thirty repetitions of the description of Cordelia, 'her voice was ever soft, gentle and low, an excellent thing in a woman'."

Parkinson goggled.

"What?" she said.

"You said excuse me, WHAT?" said Krait "You rude little girl! If you fail to understand, a 'pardon me' or excuse me' or 'I'm sorry I did not understand' would be acceptable things to say. But 'what' so baldly and rudely is NOT acceptable! You may add another thirty lines of 'Manners Maketh man' for that. Now, pray, explain to me what part of my lines that I set did you fail to comprehend that you should so rudely question them? You are not, I think, audially impaired so I fail to think that in any way you did not hear what I said."

"I didn't understand what part was you ticking me off and what part was lines" said Parkinson sulkily.

"Dear me and I thought Pansy Parkinson was dim" said Krait. "Item: an apology for tearing my book, six lines worth of your regret. Item; thirty repetitions of 'her voice was ever soft, gentle and low; an excellent thing in a woman. Item: thirty repetitions of 'Manners Maketh Man'. Do you have that or do I need to dictate them while you write them down?"

"Er…yes please, Madam Malfoy."

Krait had been indulging in sarcasm; but she sighed, conjured pen, paper and ink and spoke the two quotations again very slowly.

"You will remember an apology in your own words I trust?" she said.

"Er…Yes Madam Malfoy."

"Well thank goodness for small mercies. I suppose you are not to be entirely blamed if your family does not read. Your parents can read, actually can they?"

Priscilla flushed.

"Of course!"

"Ah, so sorry… but one does wonder in such cases. There are unfortunates out there who cannot; I am overjoyed to hear that they have at least attained some minimal level of education." Krait was irritated. This girl was rude, did not tell the truth unless forced, and yet made assumptions of superiority – hence snatching at a book – and had been heard to make much of the fact they her bloodline was almost pure. And she was stupid and ignorant as well as having the sort of vulgar shriek that the Parkinson women seemed to consider acceptable.

Sarcasm was probably unfair – and almost certainly wasted in any case – but honestly!

oOoOo

It was David who found the fire-writing outside his office proclaiming

"Down with mudbloods and goblin trash, gobbo-pokers, and stinking squibs."

The wand, a school spare wand, was left contemptuously on the floor.

It was aimed at him; the location made that clear, he was a mudblood to those who used the term, and his girlfriend was half goblin. The dig about squibs was probably aimed at Argus; so the comment probably came from Baddock senior. David picked up the wand in his handkerchief; Baddock would NOT know about fingerprints. And too, there was even a wizarding way to do this.

David nullified the firewriting without difficulty, after asking Dennis Creevey to photograph it as evidence. It was not something to let youngsters see, but evidence was evidence. He also used talc to bring out finger prints and had Creevey photograph them.

"Gosh David, will people accept muggle style evidence?" asked Dennis.

"No; this is for my own reference and Draco and Harry's when this creep is a full fledged criminal" said David "I have a good idea who it is. I'll use wizarding methods to show him up." He quickly explained to Dennis what he intended to do; because he owed it to the boy to let him in on it after his help.

Then he went to Dumbledore to ask permission to address the school at breakfast.

Dumbledore agreed; and David put on gloves to gently wipe the wand with a piece of fine paper; then asked Ed Dinalt, famed for his origami – his efforts usually wasted on such things as water bombs and paper planes – to fold it, himself wearing gloves, into a flying bird.

Then he waited for breakfast.

After the meal Dumbledore announced that the head boy had something to say.

David got up and went to the dais.

"Last night someone wrote inflammatory and racist comments near my office; most of which I would say was laughable save for the foul imputations against squibs. The perpetrator used a school wand in the hopes that his or her identity might be covered by so doing; but I have studied far too much ritual magic in the fight against Voldemort to be held up by so trivial a piece of misdirection. Let me warn you people now, especially those of you who may consider a criminal career that at every crime scene, the culprit takes something away; and leaves something of himself behind. In the case of our childish little filth scrawler it was the sweat from his hands touching the wand and a few flakes of dead skin; which are all that is required for a magical trace. I wiped the wand on a fine piece of paper which here is a flapping bird" David revealed it "And now I shall send it to find the one whose bodily fluids constitute its coating; like finds like" and he tapped the flapping bird with his wand.

It was no surprise that the bird flew directly to Baddock Senior.

"He made it fly to me, he has it in for me!" said Baddock loudly "It weren't no such thing as ritual!"

His horrified face gave him away even before Dumbledore said sharply

"Are you accusing the Head Boy of lying, Malcolm?"

"YES!" said Baddock.

"I will happily take legilimensy to clear my name of yet more vile imputation" said David tightly.

"I can see you speak truth without needing to go deep" said Dumbledore "I am the greatest legilimens in Britain at least."

"Damn" muttered Kinat to Abraxus "If he'd only said 'on earth' we might have called out that he was standing on the flagstones."

"Probably why he didn't say it" said Abraxus dryly.

"Malcolm, come here" said Dumbledore.

The boy dragged his feet.

Dumbledore regarded him long and sorrowfully.

"Had you not made so foolish an accusation against Mr Fraser you would probably have been dealt with by him after he had merely satisfied himself that his guess was true" said Dumbledore "And I would not have interfered. Now I fear your punishment will come from me. You are already in detention I see with Mr Filch for your rudeness….very well, as you cannot be civil to anybody I think I shall call upon the whole school to have no more than necessary speech with you, of the 'please pass the salt' variety. You are sent to Coventry, Malcolm, for the rest of the term or until you make a full and abject apology to David Fraser, to the school, and to me. Go and sit down."

Malcolm Baddock stumbled off dazed, thinking – until the next few days made its severity clear – that he had got off with a light punishment. Especially since Wido Mordaunt made it his personal and faintly malicious duty to see that this included Baddock's crony Pritchard. And Wido was a prefect.

Dumbledore discussed the matter – off the record – with David in his office over tea and cakes.

"This my boy is my last attempt to try to show that boy how antisocial he is" he sighed "Any more transgressions and I fear I must expel him; which is an admission of failure."

"I'd have happily been rid of him long since" admitted David "But I suppose now I'm teaching that - well I want the kids to do well. I want Imogen Tuthill to quit whining and realise that actually people are bending over backwards for her. I admit it's not for her sake, but for Freya and Ross's, because they're likeable kids and she isn't. But I want her to be happy. You must feel the same I suppose and when it's about such a creep as Baddock it must be harder."

"David, I regret every child I fail to reach; up to and including Tom Riddle" said Dumbledore. "The D'eath child who caused Severus such horrific scars by her felonious carelessness; the girls who hurt Grace so badly; Isabelle Yaxley, all of them. The ones I can break through to are sweet victories, like Fenella Fenwick whom we share I think as a joint victory; and those who do not get as far as my office that people like Severus, Draco and Krait and you have sorted out. It is mainly the two so-called clever houses, Slytherin and Ravenclaw that produce people too clever for their own good in many ways; but on the whole Slytherin has improved with the application of what you might call er, constant vigilance. And there are some good children coming up in Ravenclaw of whom I have great hopes."

"Filius Flitwick is a great wizard and possibly one of the cleverest staff members; but he's a bit rarefied to pick up on trouble" sighed David. "Severus is extremely clever but he's also shrewd."

"Now he has opened his eyes; yes" said Dumbledore. "Being miserable is almost as blinding as being rarefied. Any preoccupation leads to some blindness; I probably missed much that could have been prevented in my preoccupation over protecting Harry."

"Albus, you too are only human" said David "And I always thought – and still think – that your very humanity makes you almost superhuman. If I am ever half as wise as you as a teacher I shall feel wonderful!"

Dumbledore laughed.

"Although you know my frailties and mistakes? Yes, I see that you feel that I have learned and gone on to use them to teach with. Then if you have learned from my youthful blunders, my boy, they were not in vain. I was blinded then."

"Yes sir; you were in love with him, weren't you?" said David.

Dumbledore blinked.

"So much perspicacity so young? Yes David, I was in love with him. Desperately, passionately, secretly; as Severus loved Lily. It was why I could understand him so well….love is almost as much a, er, many headed insidious beast as Severus describes the dark arts to be; but it is not like them in that it is not mutable, it is constant. With all its faces – some of them terrible in some ways – it is constant and the strongest force in the universe. It is implacable and when it is true love, it is unquenchable save by betrayal. And not always then. And I do not speak merely of romantic love; the strongest force in the universe I think is mother love."

David nodded soberly.

"As your mother protected Ariana; Lily protected Harry; as I'd hate to be caught in the backwash if anyone hurt Krait's children. And for her that's her adopted ones too. I guess it's why a mother who betrays her function to love unrestrainedly and unconditionally is so vile. Like Parnassus' mother."

Dumbledore nodded.

"And I am proud of you, David, that you said that without bitterness for the loss of your own mother" he said.

"I have had gran; who had been my mother having lost a son as I lost a father" said David. "What can I do about Baddock?" he changed the subject abruptly back to what they had been discussing.

"I fear, David, it is about fifteen years too late for anyone to do anything about Baddock" said Dumbledore. "Habits are set early. Sometimes we can correct them when we have children here; often this is when they have had some stable and good influence in their early life; a nurse or house elf seeing to their needs before they are old enough to take in the preaching of their parents' views. As Fenella was raised though her first years by her mother, and then a house elf. He is so jealous of you I fear nothing you could do would make a difference."

"Jealous? Of ME?" David was nonplussed.

"Yes of course, of you. My dear boy, you are everything he is not – brave, honourable, clever, resourceful, persevering, a leader and withal popular. He is a Slytherin because it is traditional for his family; he has been brainwashed into expecting Slytherin house to produce leaders. He is ambitious; it is a characteristic of his house, some channel their ambition better than others. But he is ambitious without the substance to fulfil his ambitions. He is not quite as clever as you; nor as hard working to cover his intellectual deficiencies. Had he worked hard he might have achieved almost as well as you academically. Whereas you have surpassed those who are technically cleverer than you are because you never give up. He wants to be respected; but he cannot even understand that respect has to be earned. Somewhere he has the concept that you get things because you have managed to make yourself teachers' pet; he cannot, literally cannot, understand that you have earned the notice of the staff and the school because you have put yourself out for others and in your academic work. He put himself forward for the Triwizard of course; and he half wonders if you managed to trick the goblet of fire into cheating him out of his moment of glory. He knows, deep down of course, that he would never have won a single test; but he does not want to accept that. His conscious mind sees only that the mudblood has always made him look a fool, always bested him, is everyone's favourite, even – and I think this rankles most – his own house master's. When I consider how hard Severus has always been on you to cover for his partiality I wonder how someone as normally blind to truth as Baddock has seen through it; yet I think he has got to the state that simple fairness is seen as partiality."

David was horrified.

"How awful!" he exclaimed "He must be so miserable, poor bastard! – oh, beg your pardon, Albus!"

"I have heard the word before" said Dumbledore dryly. "And your sympathy does you more credit than anything else you have achieved, David; I am proud of you. Yes, he is; and I tried to reach into that misery and point him to a better way, but he has reached the stage where he wraps it around him and gloats on his misery and feeds on it without even realising how miserable he is. He is a poor creature; and I cannot see him improving. I will give him a week, and talk to him seriously, see if I can't break through. But I fear" he sighed "That it is not possible. Still, enough of Baddock; has Krait told you she has approved the movement of eight Rowan House pupils to Hogwarts?"

"No, that's excellent news!" said David, trying to dismiss poor Baddock from his thoughts. "Who?"

"All the Cloughs; they turned down Hogwarts on grounds of poverty and their wand work did not warrant scholarships" said Dumbledore "Krait reckons they're all natural potioneers, especially the oldest, who also has a touch with animals. The twins she reckons are stubborn enough and ambitious enough to make up for any natural talent deficiencies; they are also clever. The Moorcroft twins she reckons are some of the best potential potioneers she has ever seen. We only test on wand work; which is maybe a mistake. Shona is also reckoned by Miss Fenwick to have an instinctive grasp of arithmancy too. We have also the muggle boy Gregory Havelock who seems to have developed the ability to use a wand suddenly" he twinkled "WHAT a surprise…and whose father is prepared to pay the difference. The goblin girls are also being paid for, though Arjelan's father asked if there might be help if her younger siblings are picked. I explained that her younger siblings will come of right since she has earned a place as they are not muggles; and that a grant would be found. I believe those two girls are remarkably enterprising."

"So Severus said, sir" said David dryly.

"Well, we shall Sort them tomorrow" said Dumbledore.

"I look forward to that, sir" said David.

He had to seek out Baddock.

"Look here, Baddock, we've had a lot of bad blood between us; if you want to get anything that's bothering you out into the open and see if we can't look into starting over, I'm willing to meet you half way" he said.

Baddock sneered.

"Oh mister goody-goody Fraser, prepared to be so nice and sweet like an ickle girlie. You going to cwy and kiss me then?" he said.

"No; but because I'm a prefect I'm not going to give in to my first impulse and belt your face in" said David. "You're hopeless; just remember I tried you poor prune."

"Yeah, you're so wonderful and marvellous but I ain't going to kiss your arse like all the rest" said Baddock.

David shrugged.

"Suit yourself. I won't close the door on you changing your mind" he said.

"Then you'll get draughty" jeered Baddock.

David gave up.

Dumbledore was right; it really WAS too late.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

The Hatting of the Rowan House people was quite an event; and Lionel and friends were ready to cheer their bloodkin whatever house they ended up in.

Lionel was truly delighted that his cousin was to be a Slytherin with him; and the second year boys were at least some of them decent too, Seaghsron Snape, Godfrey Goodchild and Gerald Purbeck being, as Jade Snape's especial friends boys Grigs could get on with. With Heather in the house at that age too he'd have bloodkin of his own age.

The younger Clough boys were also in Slytherin, in the first year; and Lionel cheered on general principles. He had heard that they were reckoned competent potioneers; and that was something to please their house master! The older Clough, together with the Moorcrofts were to be second year Hufflepuffs; though the hat thought for a long time about Shona. According to rumours Lionel had heard from his various sources, Madam Malfoy had tipped Shona to be in Ravenclaw; which showed how highly she thought of the girl's brains. But personal preference did count; and maybe Shona had heard of the Ravenclaw reputation for a certain kind of snobbishness, and moreover wanted to be with her twin.

Cholaka and Arjelan were sorted into Gryffindor; and Freya and Ross raised the roof.

Lionel calculated. They had in the Bloodgroup five in Slytherin, six Gryffindor – or seven if you counted Hagrid – and three Hufflepuff. That wasn't bad for an inter-house stretch; he did not think it right to invite Ravenclaws just for the sake of having them, there would have to be a spontaneous friendship for that to occur. Still they could forge alliances with Mei Chang and her gang.

The marauders had a similar idea; and Mei herself, Leo, Lydia, Mad and Chad – the names went so well together as Hawke said – were invited to a party by the New Marauders and the Junior Marauders and informed that they had been picked provisionally as potential marauders.

"What about Julia?" said Lydia

"She's a bit too Hermione Granger" said Abraxus "Hermione was a Young Marauder perforce with Harry and Ron, and later Draco, Neville and Krait; but let's face it she wasn't very Marauder-y. And I can see Julia scolding in the same tone of voice."

Lydia considered this; then nodded.

"And none of the older members of my gang?" said Mei

"They wouldn't be a gang if you weren't the pivot" said Hawke. "The point of being a marauder is that any one could lead it; and whichever one is appropriate to the situation does. And it's more than just mucking about. We're in some ways Dumbledore's secret agents; so secret he doesn't know officially that he has us. We're the first to volunteer to fight. Only the ones we reckon have the balls enough to look death in the face and walk smiling to meet it get invited."

"You d-d-don't muck about then" said Leo.

"No; we don't" said Romulus. "We also will consider making you blood kin; Lydia already is for special reasons. We also work closely with Lionel and co who have a similar sort of outlook to us. If you don't want to take the heat, now's the time to get out of the cauldron before we blow up the really big flames."

"I'm in" said Mei.

"Y'think we'd be out?" said Mad, answering for all the boys who nodded.

Lydia also just nodded.

Being a marauder was what she always wanted; and was afraid that with Jade the youngest of the Junior Marauders that it might miss a year or two.

"Okay; we'll let you join in with some stuff and start showing you more things and telling you marauder craft secrets as you get a bit older" said Hawke "Keep your own gangs going; they are your friends but you are also core members of the defence of Hogwarts in training. We have fun too; but never forget that as the main objective."

Mei was flattered.

Actually having an objective was very nice!

The boys were too young mentally to fully appreciate it yet, though they were glad to be the ones selected; and Lydia knew more than most adults what Hawke meant.

The whole bloodgroup was to be on standby too when Erich was to help out Tala; if all went well, it seemed sensible to blood her in fully as she would be partially joined; and Seagh was also to be brought in. With the babies born into the group it would make a nice arithmantic number of thirty six. Krait said that almost into the Yule holiday would be the best time, on the dark of the moon.

Meanwhile life went on and David had his groups to take into Diagon Alley, first and second years first, then the rest.

It was a shock to hear a witch shout,

"Stop it AT ONCE Harry or I'll put a scolding curse on your robe!"

The child, about three, was having a temper tantrum; and David realised that Harry was probably the most common name for small boys in the wizarding world right now. Ellie's little brother would be only one of many; among them Harry Dursley of course!

There was a whole group of children at Florean Fortescue's; it looked like some well off child was having a party, judging by the party robes and the spoilt looking faces of some of them. Several of them pointed, jeered and giggled at David's charges.

"Here we have an example of Bloodsnobbus ridikulus stuckuppida" said David in a bored tone of voice "The cry of this curious but eminently boring creature never various and is famed for its ability to send the intelligent to sleep. I see my children you are already half stupefied; let us move on"

Ruth Thomas giggled.

"I say Professor Fraser, you are awful!" she said.

"I get irritated by snobs" said David

"Cuh, and to think we thought Hogwarts was a snob school at first!" said Ruth.

"Believe me, it has its share; those boys at the centre who sniggered so rudely are, I think, of the Corbin family; a prominent Ravenclaw family of pure blood and let everyone know it" said David "One of my closest friends is Grace Corbin who was disowned for not being academically good enough; my guardian adopted her and she changed her name. She got only seven OWLs and left school early; but that was to marry her sweetheart, Draco Malfoy. They had their first child last spring. She's happy; and that is what counts more than anything"

He hoped this little homily might go into Imogen's ears.

"Gosh, she married THE bachelor of the wizarding world next to Harry Potter!" breathed Liatris Collins "He's so handsome and clever… I bet she's clever in ways the academic world can't measure, like being sensible; you'd have to be to be the wife of an Auror!"

David now had to deliver a brief lecture on what an auror was.

"Mr Fraser! Mr Fraser! A quick word?"

David looked round; he was being addressed by a goblin he recognised as Golgo, Garjala's father.

"Don't wander off" he said to his class and walked a few steps away.

"Golgo – how can I help you?" he said "Garjala isn't – to my knowledge – in any more trouble than usual I don't think. So long as she hands in the lines I set her on time" he joked.

Golgo managed a grin.

"Oh she's quite a kid is my girl. Swore she's going to marry Fred AND George Weasley to get a better price for her clockwork toys because either one might as well be the other…not that she's old enough to think about such things seriously, and with wizards too…"

"Oh a fine witch like Garjala will be able to take her pick of any husband I should think" said David firmly, making it clear he saw no social difference between Garjala and the Weasley boys.

"Nice of you to say so Mr Fraser…but it wasn't about my girl, it's a rumour I heard. A nasty rumour."

"My apologies, Golgo; I'm all ears."

"My sources tell me that some wizards who object to greater equality for goblins have come up with a way of putting us in our place; they've started a goblin coursing club."

"Bloody Hell!" said David, shocked. "Sorry, I was taken aback."

"And thanks Mr Fraser that you care enough to be shocked" said Golgo "We goblins appreciate those of you who carry the mark of valour who have fought for our rights too. And we appreciate that one of our own is one of that number. Two if you count young Ellie. Not all do. But – well, you have contacts too; could you keep your ear to the ground?"

"I certainly shall; and I'll let Draco and Harry know" said David. "Are you on good terms with Kordach at all?"

"He's rather out of my league" admitted Golgo.

"Well, I know him; I'll pass that on to him too" said David.

He returned to the children, sobered.

Muggle slaves; goblin coursing. There were a lot of unpleasant things still to be stamped out in the wizarding world.

And how deeply, he wondered, were people like the Baddock family involved!

After seeing his charges safely back, David decided to skip lunch and go directly to see Kordach. And after mentally reviewing what route he would have to take by tube – six stops on the district line – he smote himself on the forehead and apparated. Quicker, cheaper, easier.

Dalling Road was as grimy and dismal as usual and David hurried through the wall into Obscura Alley which was grimy, but at this end at least not dismal.

Kordach lived at number five, next to his law consultant; it was a property in grounds set back from the street with various children playing in the grounds who stopped and stared at him curiously as he opened the gate. The oldest, a little girl, looked to be half human. She was much the same age as the Corbin boys he had seen in Diagon Alley; by the clothing of all of the children at least as well off, but she gave a friendly smile, left her companions and ran over.

"Are you looking for Daddy?" she asked.

David had been told by Lucius that Kordach had made an arranged marriage to a goblin woman of respectable estate and fortune who was sickly, and who encouraged him in having a bevy of beauties; and also that if any of Kordach's beauties presented him with a child that he arranged for them to live in luxury as his lifetime pensioner in one of Lucius' apartments in Obcura Alley so they might rear their own child but so that the children of his wife and of his mistresses were close enough to grow up together. Apart from the fact that his legitimate son, the third child of his wife, was his acknowledged heir, Kordach apparently made no difference between his children.

"I'm looking for Kordach; which I presume is the same thing" said David, holding out a hand "David Fraser"

She took his hand, awed.

"I say!" she said "Can I have your autograph?"

David laughed.

"Of course! Is it worth taking?"

She tossed her curls.

"I'll say – winner of the Triwzard, fighter against Voldemort, played quidditch against the world cup holders, Mr Fraser, sir, you are most awfully famous!"

"Oh!" said David, surprised. He summoned paper and a quill and asked,

"Who do I dedicate it too?"

She went pink.

"I'm Anastasia" she whispered "Though I get called Stacey, 'cos it shouts better; I use my mum's surname Preston, like the famous Ellie Devlin. Is it true she's your girlfriend?"

David smiled and wrote 'to Anastasia all the best, David Fraser'.

"More than my girlfriend; we're engaged" he said proudly, having asked Ellie formally in the holidays.

"OH! That's SO romantic!" breathed Anastasia. "But then of course, I guess that having been through all that you've been through together, neither of you could love anyone who hadn't been there, could you?"

David looked at her anew.

"That" he said "Is a remarkably profound remark, youngster; and has more sense in it that a lot of grown ups manage. You'll do."

"For what?" she asked.

"Gryffindor" said David laconically. "Ah, here's your father."

Kordach had come out.

"Mr Fraser, I'm sorry, is my horror holding you up?"

David laughed.

"She's flattering me by asking for my autograph; and as I shan't be on the train for Hogwarts when she goes up – next year I suppose? – she may as well have it now if she wants it."

"I have applied for her yes" said Kordach. "As she's half human I was hoping a precedent might let my other children in."

"It's on examination for goblins at the moment unless a family connection is established" said David "And you know as well as I know that such is politics to prevent trouble and damage to the cause of equality."

Kordach nodded.

"Oh I'm no idiot to damage something wonderful but still fragile" he said "Do you think she'll be accepted?"

"There are precedents established going back to Cosmo Malfoy for part goblins; I don't think there's likely to be a problem" said David "And the younger ones then, as you say, by right. We just transferred two Nottingham goblin girls from the new school; and one has younger siblings who'll be there by right. Madam Prince" he remembered to use Krait's official name "Is hoping to set up a day school in Obscura Alley in 66b and any indigent kids, whatever their race or blood status, could then transfer on scholarship. Madam Prince is prepared to cover five scholarships a year; and Lucius is covering as many. When the day school is set up, can we touch you for a contribution?"

Kordach laughed.

"I like you, David Fraser, you say it like it is! Is that what you're here for, to touch me for a scholarship or two? And may I say, I like that way that you assure me first that my kids are likely to get into Hogwarts; some would hint that it was conditional on me coughing up."

"Dumbledore would skin anyone who behaved like that!" said David, indignantly. "Hogwarts does NOT work by bribery! And, trying to touch you for a contribution was incidental; I've far more serious business."

"Speak on."

"Out of the way of little pitchers, if you don't mind; I don't want anyone getting scared" said David grimly.

Kordach gave him a startled look and led him to his office.

"Magically muffled" he said "As well as having the door and windows imperturbed."

"Wise precaution with kids about" said David. "Ah, and I suppose business rivals who would pay for information?"

"Precisely…now tell me what it was you wished to see me about" Kordach said, pouring wine.

"It's information Golgo passed me; he had been told it by his contacts, so it's unverified, but shocking if true" said David "He has heard of a goblin-coursing club set up by racist pricks who don't like the new laws, supposedly to keep goblins in their place by terror. I would assume that the idea would be that anyone who gets what they call above themselves would disappear into this club as prey and the relatives threatened that it could be them if they talk."

Kordach set his wine glass down with a crash that almost broke the stem.

His eyes glittered bitterly.

"There's always those that want to take the few concessions we gain at any time!" he said "Not that these concessions are few, it's a real step in the right direction, Mr Fraser; and I've been sitting firmly on those activists who say that now is the time to push for more. I'm afraid even goblins have their share of morons."

"It's part of the condition of all beings I think" said David "And the most moronic those that don't use the brains they have….thank you for helping us change things by not letting idiots comply with the generally accepted view of greedy, violent and untrustworthy goblins. We can only go so fast without getting more support for those who have this monstrous idea."

"It's already doomed to failure though; thanks in large I have to say to Golgo" Kordach's eyes were still glittering but now from furious thinking. "He told a wizard; and not just any wizard but one of THE wizards. He brought it into the open. This will only work in the favour of those who want to use it as a means to control us while the whispers and the fear remain in the goblin community. Maybe he isn't as stupid as I've always thought him."

"My fiancée's father, Grutch, says Golgo is all squeak and no trousers about his noisy protests; but he's not stupid. He's stopped making a row since those demands have been largely met. Golgo, judging by the intelligence his daughter displays, is a frustrated intellectual. I wouldn't mind betting if he'd gone to Hogwarts he might have ended up in Ravenclaw house."

"Where's – Garjala, isn't she?"

"Gryffindor; she has a healthy streak of mischief in her and uses her brains as much for that as for her schoolwork" said David with a grin "She can drive you up the pole; but there's no vice in her. I spend half the time I see her setting her lines, but I like the child."

"You are a remarkable man, Mr Fraser" said Kordach, softly "You have no prejudice at all; you see goblins as people without any side to you."

David shrugged.

"What did we fight for if not for freedom and equality for all?" he said "And I wish you will call me David, sir."

"You see? You call me 'sir' because you're technically still a schoolboy and ask me to use your given name – there are very few wizards who would do that."

"Any of us who carry the scar would" said David "And I assure you we are NOT the only ones. Our kids at Hogwarts still have racists and bloodsnobs; but we are getting an increasingly healthy attitude. And those attitudes will stay with those kids for life when THEY are adult, come through in what THEY teach their children. Albus Dumbledore is a great man. His gentle guidance can do more for changing attitudes than any amount of legislation and speeches on the wireless. And I am proud to be his man and do what I can to support him."

"We live in amazing times" said Kordach. "I will certainly put this about and ask for more information; have you spoken to Mr Malfoy?"

"No sir, not yet; you were my first port of call" said David "I thought I'd send owls to him and Draco and Harry. As aurors they too have their sources. And it spreads it around human wizards too; and you are quite right, that's important. It must NOT be permitted to be driven underground and ignored by non-goblins."

"Quite. Have you eaten Mr – David?"

"No; but I have to get back anyway, I've another field trip through Diagon Alley with my Rowan House kids this afternoon" said David, glancing at his watch, a fine one Severus had bought him for his seventeenth birthday to celebrate his coming of age. "I've gone hungry before in my life; I shan't melt. It's probably a good idea to remind oneself occasionally what it's like to be hungry anyway. It's been almost seven years since I last was; being comfortable and happy can get to be a habit but it's well to remember that such is NOT universal."

"You really are a remarkable lad, David" said Kordach "And one day you'll be as great as Dumbledore."

David laughed.

"Oh I hope one day I'll be half as wise" he said. "Do you mind if I apparate?"

Kordach waved a hand of permission and David took himself back to just outside the anti apparating zone round Rowan House.

There was no need to use his special skills to go inside after all; he had five minutes in hand.

The older children managed to look slightly less of a rabble in Diagon Alley; and David had time to notice a threadbare man whom he had seen leaving a house in Obscura Alley when he had gone to see Kordach. The man came out of the apothecary's shop and buried his face in his hands.

"Stay there" said David and went over to him. "Sir? Can I help you?"

The man raised a face full of despair; then looked at the scar. Hoped burned briefly.

"I do not know, sir; but perhaps. It was said on the wireless that - that wolfbane potion was to be made available to all who needed it; but they have none. None. And the apothecary sneered at my clothing and said I could not afford it anyway. I understood…."

"That it is to be issued free? Yes it is" said David grimly. "I'll have someone go and talk to this apothecary. It's full moon tomorrow, isn't it? What's your name?"

The man nodded.

"Yes; full moon tomorrow. And I can feel it. My name's Ulric Rolf."

"I'm David Fraser; look, I have my duties to these kids, but if you'll wait in Fortescue's I'll take you up to Hogwarts when I go back. Professor Snape always keeps abundant quantities; he brews it for Professor Lupin and one of our students" he hesitated "Professor Snape and his oldest son are working on a cure. If you were paid for your trouble, would you be prepared to take part in the trials?"

"I'd take part in the trials for free, Mr Fraser – Professor Fraser is that?"

David grinned.

"To my Rowan House bunch only; I'm still 'my dear boy' or 'ah, Fraser' to the staff at Hogwarts. I'm head boy there, and teaching part time, I answer to David quite happily."

"Then I'd be delighted to take part in trials. I need no payment."

"Excuse me, Mr Rolf, but I disagree. You would need compensation in case the primary potions cotain any side effects. Being a wolf is one thing but supposing you also for example grew golden curls and had a voice like Gilderoy Lockhart?"

Ulric Rolf actually laughed.

"It IS a hideous picture, isn't it?" he said "Well if for nothing else, and if Professor Snape will not part with any potion, I thank you for the first laugh I've had in a long time!"

"Oh he'll give you the potion" said David "Trust me; I'm his ward, I know what he's like. One of his best friends is Professor Lupin you know."

"Then I thank you again; and I shall await you."

There was the usual bustle in the alley, a large wizarding family with a quiverful of children – all below school age – appeared to be doing a shop for several months' worth of goods, mostly the yearly shop for new gowns for growing children and a maternity gown for the mother whose current one looked well worn. They had a bag from Hubble and Sterr the primary suppliers of potion ingredients, whose large, strangely-scented shop was next to the cauldron shop.

David took his students into Hubble and Sterr just to look around; it was a place he had grown to love through visiting it with Severus. Mr Hubble was a cheerful man and Mr Sterr was a rather acidulated precise fellow said to be part goblin, who made sure that Mr Hubble's genius at getting the ingredients was not overshadowed by Mr Hubble's lack of genius as a businessman. Mr Hubble's family often married into the Weasley family, and more recently the Black-Weasley family; Mr Hubble's daughter was the mother of a long family of cousins to Lynx and Leo, though his brother had chosen to send his own daughter to a small private girl's school run on English lines by an English witch somewhere on the continent, twinned with a boys' school to which another nephew had gone; and he too had chosen to send his children to the smaller schools.

Mr Hubble had enjoyed discussions with Severus over how things were improving between houses, the bitter rivalries and vicious fights being the main reason his relatives had chosen alternative education being the blood snobbery; and Mr Hubble's son Denis was debating whether to send his oldest daughter to Hogwarts when she was old enough or stay with the smaller schools. Denis Hubble had been a few years younger than Severus and the Marauders and had seen more than enough from the point of view of someone who leaped out of the way of Slytherin bullies and Gryffindor Lordlings alike and David quite sympathised with his scepticism.

He removed his fascinated children with difficulty and moved them on, pausing to tell a group of jeering goblin children to get lost in the rather basic Gobbledegook he had picked up from Kinat.

They were impressed enough to shut up and withdraw, though they did follow the group, giggling until a male goblin David did not know cuffed them all soundly and raised an apologetic hat to David. David shrugged, and grinned. Kids would be kids.

Hermione Weasley was in the Alley too, and had apparently been haranguing a crowd on her favourite subject, elf rights, presumably between her studies of how electricity affected the magical world. A rather snotty ministry man had been foolish enough to question Hermione on her right to hold a meeting and to demand to see her permit. David winced as Hermione explained chapter and verse of the law to him outlining her rights between withering him with the sort of sarcasm she had learned from Severus. Lucius was in the alley too, buying a toy broom for small Lucasta who had birthday money from the more unimaginative of her relatives; and he was moving to back Hermione up, less out of liking for Hermione than for dislike of snotty officials.

David hurried his charges onward; whilst this promised to be highly entertaining it was NOT for the tender ears of teenagers!

They stopped to look at the owls; learning to care for owls was one of the things David had placed on the curriculum, because it made communication with other members of the wizarding world much easier.

"Can we look at other animals too?" asked a boy, called James Fidpepper "I can talk to snakes."

"_**ssss**You mean like this?**ssss**_" hissed David in Parseltongue.

James beamed.

"You can do it too?" he said happily.

"I can indeed…. All of us who bear the scar do. I need to tell Madam Malfoy this" said David.

"Oh she know! Tha's why I'm in Rowan House; she was a-visiting the old Riddle House in Little Hangleton where I do come from and she caught me in the garden chatting to her pet snake. Cuh, he do-ant harf be a bigg-un!"

"Septimus is rather magnificent" agreed David "You have no spell skill then?"

The boy shook his head.

"Madam Malfoy said I moight be a late developer; she say some o' moi kin du be. And if not, I du orter larn wass moi fambly background."

"Quite so, Mr Fidpepper" said David

They went to see other animals and James Fidpepper chatted happily to the snakes; and the proprietor was becoming almost used to it by now.

There was some momentary excitement returning down the alley; it appeared that some local child had offered Lucasta a toffee that was in fact ton-tongue toffee, and while tears of terror ran down her face Narcissa was cuddling her and Fred and George haring across with an antidote; and her half brother Drogo was laying into the boy who had thought it funny to tease a Malfoy child several years his junior. The boy had to be almost eight; Drogo was three, and Lucius was encouraging his son to put the boot in and protect his sister.

"If mine big b'uvvers was here you' run away!" opined Drogo, giving the boy an efficient Glaswegian kiss in a tender place.

"That's my boy!" said Lucius proudly as the bigger boy folded up. "You show him that a Mlafoy doesn't let big bullies pick on little girls!"

Lucasta had received the antidote by now and had accepted a toffee from Fred – or it might have been George – that they promised was a real one.

"And you're BANNED from the shop, Peter, d'you hear?" said the other twin sternly. "Giving it to a kid that small? You might have killed her and then you'd have gone to Azkaban for murder!"

This was the finish for the urchin who burst into tears and fled, little realising that as a child he could not be sent to Azkaban. David thought that Fred – or George was however wise to point out that actions had consequences.

"Huh, I know that kid" Agnes, a girl of about thirteen, came from the wrong end of Diagon Alley too, but had not shown enough talent to make a scholarship to Hogwarts worthwhile "His family are all feckless, probably thieves too, and all he knows how to do is taunt better off kids. He deserves to get banned from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes."

"Hi Fraser, these your charges?" George – or Fred finished apologising to Lucius for the misuse of their product and noticed David's cavalcade. "Why not bring them in and let them look around?"

"How about because I value my sanity too much?" said David. "All right then people a QUICK look and NO purchases. What ever it is, it's banned. If there's anything you want you'll have to buy it illicitly, not under the eye of a staff member."

Once they worked that out, there were chuckles. Professor Fraser was not a bad sport at all!

David remembered to collect Ulric Rolf; and then they were back to school; and the unfortunate werewolf could be taken to Severus for dosing and to make a deposition of how he had been unable to obtain the potion.

It looked as though somebody somewhere was trying still to cause trouble for werewolves by blocking their chance to lead a normal life.

And THAT needed addressing too!


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Mei Chang and Jade's gangs were making a worse row than usual and David went to see what was going on.

Between arguing over what they were going to play, they were each practising their own favourite tune on a series of makeshift instruments, like comb-and-paper, funnel and tube and catering tins once containing jam for drums. Seagh had joined them with the bagpipes and the Moorcrofts now appeared to be part of Mei's gang with a xylophone of bottles tuned with water and a football rattle. Jade had a harp and the youngest Goodchild boy was playing her flute. They appeared to be in tune with each other at least.

David cast a silencing spell, waited for his presence to be noted and cancelled it.

"Far be it for me to stop you having legal fun – legalish anyway – but don't you think it might go better if you all played the same thing?" he asked mildly.

"We couldn't decide what to play; and when the governors visit next week we wanted to get up a concert" said Mei. "The Big Goodchilds in your year are doing a concert with proper musicians and they left out Godders who's twice the musician they are 'cos they're gits and we ain't out to support them over him just 'cos they're in our house and he isn't. Fair's fair after all."

"Yes and they asked me to play so it's not because of him being a wart like me" said Jade. "And they asked Seag too because of how well he did at the Yule Ball last year for the Triwizard visitors. And when we found out they wouldn't have Godfrey on grounds that as their parents hadn't paid for lessons he couldn't know anything we told them to stick their concert where the sun don't shine and we got together with Mei to hold an alternative concert."

"Right" said David "Everyone write down your favourite piece and two other pieces you like; and I'll sort you out a list of things to practice and play. Are you having solos?"

"Yes, we're having Godders on flute with Jade accompanying" said Mei "And Seag as a lone piper. I say, Fraser, will you play 'Black Bear' for us to introduce us?"

"I'd love to Mei, and I'm flattered to be asked" said David "But I shall be showing the governors around with my Head Boy hat on I'm afraid. I turned down a rather simpering Chloe Goodchild on the same grounds, though if I'd known about her and her twin treating Godfrey so badly I'd have mentioned that in my excuses too. Get Hawke Malfoy in; he plays a mean mouthorgan. I don't suppose they consider THAT a proper instrument."

"And Abraxus whistles rather well" said Mei enthusiastically. "THANKS Fraser; and you won't let anyone stop the governors seeing OUR concert, will you?"

"Not if I have to tie Lucius Malfoy up and threaten him with the tickling curse" said David gravely.

Mei giggled.

"Now THAT I'd like to see!" she said.

Quiet investigation led to the discovery that the Moorcroft twins had acquired only two other performers, both of them Ravenclaws, and had put together a long, and rather highbrow performance. He went to see Dumbledore to clear a more impromptu performance on the part of Mei and co and found the headmaster far more enthusiastic.

"Sir, couldn't you demand each concert party give you a list of their intended works and slash the least suitable ones?" said David "The Ravenclaw group are turgid; and it'll cut out any less er, suitable numbers from our wilder elements too."

"Excellent idea" enthused Dumbledore "I shall have a combined concert, each organising group to submit their proposals – better word than intentions, my boy, more mutable and less many headed."

David grinned. Snapisms did seem to invade even the Headmaster's speech occasionally.

He went to refine the list he had received from Mei and co; and wrote down for the group to perform 'Bheir mi o' which would sound fine on combs; 'there's a zombie in my attic' which, as a comedy item went on whatever it was played; 'my old man's a de-splincher' which had similar values; 'wife of Usher's Well' because Mei had a good little voice and would carry it off well; and 'song by Mad and Chad to tune of whiskey in the jar' because it intrigued him. For Godfrey, Jade had already picked 'walking in the air' and 'Danny Boy', both excellent flute pieces and suitable to accompany with harp and Seag had decided to start with 'Black Bear' as David was not playing and pipe people off with 'auld lang syne'. Once Hawke and Abraxus were talked into it they agreed to do a twin piece in near parody of the Goodchild twins who –as their espionage had uncovered – were doing the flower duet on their violin and flute; only the Malfoy twins were singing the cat duet, with instrumental interlude. It should be a nice rounded concert and should cheer up the governors after the rather heavy Ravenclaw efforts.

Meanwhile David was perusing the records the house elves had been making of the nunlings. David had asked them to pick out any with magical potential but also any who were rebels who needed rescuing.

Of those with magic potential, four seemed to be not unhappy; a pair of sisters, one in the junior house – Dobby had disapproving comments to make about boarding small children – and one a first year whose divorced parents saw boarding school the best option while they fought over custody. Another child of just eight seemed to have decent parents, and Diccy had made sure she had seen him and had smuggled a letter out for her to her parents that did not go past the nuns, who read the girls' mail.

"She'll get called to Hogwarts in a few years, I told her" said Diccy "She's no idiot and she's going to keep it quiet until her parents are approached. 'cept when magic breaks out spontaneously. She's already been beaten for using the defensive charm spontaneously and even more because she wouldn't – 'cos she couldn't – tell them how she did it."

"Well that's one sorted" said David.

"There's another sensitive whose parents are all right and she's not exactly the rebelling type" said Dobby "She's like a house elf what doesn't want to be free."

"Well we can't help those that don't want it" said David.

The tragic child was a girl called Bethany in the fifth year who should have gone to Hogwarts who had been placed in the school at the age of eight when her mother died because her father could not think of anything else to do.

"I talked to her too" squeaked Diccy "Because she's sensible; she'll help rescue the others and lead them. There's only one other magical one, Corinne in the third and she'll adapt pretty quick I should think."

"Krait was this Bethany's age" said David "And she adapted.; she went in a year below her age, the fourth, Bethany could too; It's Dell's class; I think I might involve him, and his gang of reprobates and ease Corinne in with the year below her own age too. If she develops fast she can be put up a year. Her parents?"

Diccy snorted.

"Well they're so wrapped up in themselves they don't hardly know they have a daughter" he said "In the holidays she gets packed off on improving courses and things. She's got a friend who's a sensitive too, Lita; that's a sad story. Her mother's in a coma – magic could cure it easily – and her dad just doesn't know what to do, silly clunch. He can't see that his little girl needs him more than ever."

"I'm afraid too many people are idiots" said David "That's not confined to muggle parents; I overheard Lionel and co deciding to play salutary practical jokes on each other's absent and absconding parents so they all have alibis and decided to turn a deaf ear. Parents don't have a right to a life above that of their children's needs, not at least until they're grown up."

"But separating when peoples is unhappy means they doesn't quarrel in front of the children" squeaked Dobby.

"True; but they should still put the kids first not their love life."

"Oh I see! Dobby was thinking about the girl called Katharine whose parents can't divorce because of their religion" said Dobby. "She's a sensitive; she's fourth year."

"Then there's three muggles who are rebels and we thought they needed rescuing" said Diccy "Sally's in the fourth and she sleepwalks in fear of the nuns, her parents have gone off on a cruise and dumped her! I managed to talk to her too, 'cos she's dead shrewd and is prepared to listen even though she can't see me. I told her to talk to Bethany. The other two are second years, Coleen's parents stick her there out of the way so they can fight and Eve isn't well, and she's been sent to school for what her guardian says is 'for her own good' which means she's too much trouble. She's had something called Glan-dew-lar fever."

"Crumbs she's a bit young for that poor kid!" said David. "That can go on for months and leave you weak forever if it's not treated sympathetically."

"Eve must learn not to be lazy. Eve must learn not to play on sympathy just because she had a bit of illness. Eve must do extra exercise to make her learn moral strength" said Diccy.

David ground his teeth.

"Eve must be got out as soon as we can" he said. "Can you both talk seriously to Bethany and ask her to arrange a joint letter outlining the bad things that happen there? We need them to break out and post it to the police so that the place is investigated; then we'll just have to confund their parents I suppose into thinking that transferring them was their own idea. It'll take some organising but I dare say I'm equal to it – with a bit of help from my friends!"

oOoOo

As well as Lucius, the most active – or possibly nosy – governor, the board consisted of Ransley Corbin, grandfather of Bertram, a Ravenclaw in Mei's year whom Mei described as a 'dweeb' and who was the older brother of the twins David had seen in Diagon Alley; Herbert Macmillan, father of Ernie; and Augusta Longbottom, Neville's Gran, who greeted David enthusiastically and promised to seek out his Gran for a long chat over a nice cup of tea later.

David liked Augusta Longbottom. She was a bit starchy, and made him think of Mary Poppins but she had personally fought Deatheaters and had turned up for the Battle for Hogwarts and had turned some quite excellent jinxes on the enemy. What was more, although initially shocked at the destruction wrought by Kalashnikovs she had soon appreciated the concept of total war and, regretfully, had accepted it. Gran Longbottom had no illusions.

She also had a soft spot for anyone connected with Severus and Krait for restoring Frank and Alice to their senses.

Ransley Corbin was not so forthcoming. Having his nephew Peverel expelled for experimenting on the boy's younger cousin Grace – the act that had moved Severus to con her parents into renouncing her so he could adopt her – was not a good thing for a governor to have to live with. Even more damaging to his pride was that Grace, Ransley's second cousin, had been married to one of the most eligible bachelors of her time but not as Grace Corbin; she had made her vows as Grace Snape.

Corbin did not have anything resembling a soft spot for the Snapes.

Herbert MacMillan was as dutiful and stolid as his son, made heavy jokes to David about not having laid on a Manticore for the governors and was a worthy man. With all the good and the bad that this implied.

David took the governors first to the Potions dungeon; the second year were there under Krait's instruction. The second had no total dunces at potions and had the likes of Jade, Shona and Mike Moorcroft and Arjelan who truly shone.

Krait was not backward about pointing out how the decision to award places out of Rowan House had already paid off with one fine and two excellent potioneers. The class were brewing pepperup potions and the best were to be used for the school stores and their brewers paid for their time.

"Nothing like a bit of greed to increase the incentive" said Krait gaily "Mr Weasley do concentrate, you can manage to be one of the ones chosen if you choose to close mouth, open mind and engage brain."

"Sorry Madam Malfoy" said Roger who was watching Mei Chang stealthily jinx Mr Corbin with the fluorescent fart jinx.

Krait absently cancelled it with a twitch of the finger and waited for the governors to be leaving to say

"Miss Chang!"

David did not hear the rest, but Jade reported that Krait had dictated a list of words like 'effluvium' and 'cacaceous' for Mei to look up and copy out the definitions for.

The governors next visited the Transfigurations class, where the fourth were changing Guinea fowl into guinea pigs; and one guinea pig with a rather human face was running squeaking in horror around the floor.

Lionel Dell was saying,

"As for what spell it is, Professor McGonagall, it's his own for all I cast was a reflecting spell when I noticed his wand had er, carelessly strayed in its aim."

He glanced at the entrants and rapidly leaped to his feet, motioning up the others.

McGonagall nodded to the governors and waved her wand at the squealing creature and hoisted firmly to have Albert Jackman dangling in mid air, still – for a moment – squeaking like a guinea pig.

"Gentlemen, Madam Longbottom, Ye'll a' excuse me I'm sure whilst I purse a wee matter of discipline. Mr Jackman" said Madam McGonagall "Prray would ye care tae enlighten me on whom ye were tryin' tae cast yon spell?"

"I – er, I don't know what you're talking about Professor" said Jackman, his eyes sliding to one side.

"Do ye no'" said McGonagall "Weel I think ye ken fine what I mean and I think I'll leave ye there conseederin' wha's that answer ye're going tae give me. I havenae ony rrreason tae use this rroom again until tomorrow."

"It was that mudblood Callum Delaney that calls himself Prince" said Jackman, who had no desire to dangle in mid air overnight "I thought it would be funny to see him as a guinea pig."

"Indeed, Mr Jackman. Noo, since it was yer own spell rrreflected ye ken the noo why we dinnae teach human transfiguration until the sixth forrrm since it is a tricky piece o' worrk and cannae be done perrrfectly until ye ken fine wha's the doing. Ye'll find I hae put back a' the internal organs ye nearly managed tae lose; and ye'll ken a'so that ye couldnae reason as an animal, fer the changing of a human tae an animal, save by the most talented or by an animagus dislocates the human reasoning power frae the body in question."

"But please, Madam McGonagall, what about the Woodlice?" said Lionel "If I'd known it was risky I'd have _protego'd_ Cal, not _speculum'd_."

"Weel I appreciate that , Mr Dell; and ye have tae ken that Madam Malfoy is a talented transfigurist beyond what is normally accepted. Otherwise such things wouldnae be permitted at a'. Mr Jackman, ye may sit me a detention tonight and we shall explore a' the things that can go wrong with transfiguration; and in addition ter that ye'll write me oot an hundred times 'I mustnae be a racist' and ye'll also look on this as a final warning, any more high jeenks frae ye and ye're oot o' ma class." She lowered him to the floor. "The rest of ye may be seated nae doot" she said.

"Please – carry on as though we are not here" said Lucius "It is no part of a governor's duty to disrupt the running of the school."

McGonagall inclined her head.

She had intended to do so any way; but she did accord Lucius a nod for his courtesy as she went to inspect the guinea pigs.

Mary-Anne's still had a very fine feathery tail; Tim's was clucking.

Garjala's was a rosette type guinea pig of obvious pedigree in three colours.

"Excellent, Garjala, I cannae fault it" said McGonagall "Mr Dell! Well done, that is an improvement!"

"Thank you Ma'am" said Lionel "I read up on some theory; it seems to have helped."

"Weel that may be a lesson tae ye a'" said McGonagall as the bell went; and she dismissed class.

The governors heard a female voice telling Jackman as they left,

"Well Jackman you are three different shades of stupid ARSE, that just proves how dim you are as well as how prejudiced. Tamsin's the one who's muggleborn, Callum is Professor Snape's cousin – and Professor Snape is related to the Princes. Gooder doesn't always use his father's name because the fellow's a git. Only since he found a relative he's kinda prouder of he doesn't mind being Prince, so there. And you only don't try to jinx Garjala 'cos you're scared of her 'cos she's harder than you but so's Gooder and me and lots of us so go very warily to bed creep features 'cos I'm going into Hogsmead to see what I can get to make your life uncomfortable."

The whole of this speech would have been lost had not Lucius been as curious as David and had cast an amplifying spell as the voices receded.

"Gooder?" Lucius said.

"Cynthia reckoned he was a bit of a do-gooder; she calls him Gooder, he calls her Cynner and they're more or less an item" said David succinctly.

"Three different shades of stupid arse…dear me, more colourful – goodness, no pun intended – than the oaths of my young day" said Mr MacMillan.

"But then you weren't a Slytherin, Herbert" said Lucius. "Houses?"

"Cynner's a Slyther, Callum's a Gryff" said David. "Nice little group that, their clique spreads over three houses. I look for them to produce some good prefects in the future."

"Excellent, Excellent" put in Mr Corbin "And how many Ravenclaws?"

"Oh, none sir… just the three reliable houses. As I said, nice bunch, no side to them, friendly and obedient" said David, smiling brightly and paying off several scores against the whole of Grace's coldly academic family. It had been he, after all, who had first befriended Grace and who had taken her to Severus when she collapsed after Peverel's potion had caused her so much harm.

"You don't consider Ravenclaw House reliable then, young man?" said Corbin.

"Well, sir, there are some youngsters now coming in who seem more concerned with school honour than with personal glory and House Shields and such; but it is a sad fact that only Ravenclaw House was conspicuous by its absence – bar one girl – in the Battle for Hogwarts; and when a whole school team was formed to play interschool quidditch matches, when the top Ravenclaw player was offered chaser because nobody could best Harry Potter as seeker, not only did she throw a hissy fit, but the Ravenclaw team decided to boycott the whole thing. Hardly the act of people hoping to be considered 'reliable'" said David. "Equally the concert you are to be subjected to – uh, have been invited to – has been partly arranged by older Ravenclaws from Ravenclaws; I am glad to say the junior efforts, partially overseen by a couple of prefects, have spread across all four houses, we may hope that Ravenclaw House may recover from a dark period even as Slytherin already – largely – has."

"Still a few problems?" sighed Lucius.

"You met one – Jackman" said David. "Dell however is also Slytherin and I have great hopes of him. He came with a few preconceived ideas but he's too intelligent not to be influenced by the evidence of his own eyes. He's the kid who passed on the information that there might be a problem at the bottom of Obscura Alley that Draco mopped up so neatly."

Lucius nodded.

"We've largely overcome the infection that was Tom Riddle, though?"

"I think so, sir; back down to the odd case of normal snobbery. We have enough Malfoys in the place to jump on it though, even though Wendy still hasn't fulfilled your nephews' wishes to produce quads so they can get one in each house."

Lucius roared with laughter; and Augusta Longbottom too chuckled. When it had sunk in so did Herbert MacMillan.

"Little horrors" said Madam Longbottom "I'm sure that went down well!"

"Well I heard that Wendy – their mum – chased them with a fish" said David. "I can't say I entirely blame her, either; coming out with that when she's in the throes of Christmas preparations with twin girls just toddling underfoot…."

Augusta winced.

"I'd say they got off lightly" said she.

"Well, well, aiming perhaps to get a prefect in each house so there's a chance any head boy or girl might be a Malfoy – ambitious indeed!" said Mr MacMillan. "Perhaps Ernie and Hannah should try for that! Though my youngest brother has four children, but both his girls are Hufflepuff."

"Oh but Mr MacMillan, everyone knows the Malfoys are like Professor Snape's description of the Dark Arts, mutable and many headed" said David.

Lucius cuffed him gently.

"David, you are a cheeky brat still!" he said.

David grinned.

"It's my last year as an irresponsible schoolboy; I might as well make the most of it."

Lucius laughed, and sighed.

"I remember Draco saying much the same thing when I caught him buying inappropriate things from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes" he said. "WHO did he intend the ton-tongue toffee for do you know?"

"Durmstrang" said David "He left it lying around to see if it walked. It did. They have no honour there. The swooping cursers were for a last day jape against Professor Snape, a whole spiel about 'Professor Spurious Snake' you know."

"That Convolvumort thing your Draco did was the funniest thing I ever heard" said Herbert MacMillan "Brilliant! Can't say I understand this General Disorder so well."

"I'll explain a few things to you later, Herbert" said Lucius "Things you'll need to know. David, are we supposed to be eating?"

"Well everyone else was planning to sir" said David. "And then the concert afterwards. No bags provided, I'm sorry; but they're none of them as bad as the glee club we had at one time. They could be placed under the classification of dark creatures"

"Now I heard a rumour that you and your bagpipes already had been…" said Lucius.

"I was bad at first; I think everyone is" grinned David.

"You did a fine job at Draco's, Grace's, Harry's and Ginny's wedding" said Lucius. If he shot half a malicious look at Mr Corbin, who had NOT been invited it was so fast David might almost have thought he had imagined it; if he didn't know Lucius so well.

The concert went very well. The first half – the Ravenclaw half – was very well rehearsed and smooth and really lacked any kind of vital spark. Everyone clapped politely.

During the brief break, first and second years handed out sheets with words on.

"You'll have to share, we're sorry" said Lydia "The charm on the copying quill ran out and we ran out of time."

"Thank you for your trouble" said Lucius politely "Augusta and David and I can manage to share I'm sure."

The words for their songs were on it.

"We've got the words to Mad and Chad's song too, but that's on sale after" said Lydia "It's our joint effort to go towards getting the day school going; and we did THAT all by hand."

"Enterprising" murmured Lucius, glancing at David.

"I don't know sir" said David "I only know it's to the tune of 'whiskey in the jar' so it could be almost anything."

"I await it with eagerness" said Lucius "I hope it's scurrilous."

"I hope NOT" said David "They assured me nobody who counted could be upset by it. Oh lumme, I wonder what they meant by 'who counted?"

Lucius laughed.

"I expect we'll find out" he said.

The junior band was introduced by the haunting strains of Seaghsron playing Black Bear.

"Ye ken, Ah'm ded'catin' this tae David Frraser who taught us it" said Seagh. "Ah'm o' the opeenion we should a' adopt it as oor school tune and a rrrallyin' ca' tae action as it was fer them that fought that sleekit wee sumpf ca'd Tom Rriddle."

There was laughter and Seagh glowered.

"It's no' funny!" he said and stalked off, much on his dignity to be soothed by Jade while the rest played, whilst demanding the audience join in, 'There's a Zombie in my attic' with great gusto if not a huge amount of accuracy. They improved – largely because they had stopped giggling – to accompany Mei for 'Wife of Usher's Well' then Jade played for Godfrey on flute.

His pure, perfect tones soared and Lucius sat up, as did Corbin.

The applause was a sight more than for his siblings.

"Who is that boy? He's brilliant!" said Lucius.

"He's the youngest brother of the twins who organised the first half, who didn't ask him because he's not been given lessons from THEIR parents budget – they being the musical ones - and because he's not in their house" said David.

"But who taught him then?" demanded Lucius.

"Jade. She's good at it isn't she?" said David "But he's natural. Typical Ravenclaw parents of course."

"Quite" said Lucius. "What house is he?"

"Slytherin."

"Then I can legitimately give him a music scholarship without having to argue…. He must have professional training."

David grinned.

This was probably what Jade had been planning.

The group played again and the audience were expected to join in with 'My old man's a de-splincher'. The performers with instruments that permitted it and their choir – the rest of the first and second years – did appropriate actions to each verse until Lucius for one was unable to sing for laughing. Even solemn Herbert MacMillan was laughing; only Mr Corbin seemed unmoved.

Then it was Jade and Godfrey once more; and the audience hushed quickly for that sublime flute.

They were followed by Hawke and Abraxus meowing musically with great gusto, and a musical interlude with a brief harmonica and siffleur which disappeared momentarily into a pastiche on the Delibes work chosen by the Goodchilds before resuming the main theme.

This gave the younger ones a bit of a rest before what they obviously considered their piece de resistance ' a poem to the tune of Whiskey in the Jar by Mad Lockhart and Chad Fenwick with input from Leo Black Weasley."

There was an introduction then the pure young voices rose in harmony.

"As I was going into the dungeon to do potions

The smell from Baddock's cauldron was like Fido Fraser's motions

Professor Snape had smelled it, I could see that he was scowling

Evil concatenations was he heard to them be growling,

_With me wack foldedol diddle day_

_Wack fola stirrer oh, wack fola stirrer oh,_

_There's gunk within the jar._

This cacacious effluent that filled the room with fetor

Roiled in noisome bubbles that never could get better

And though Professor Snape let fly with his vocabulary

That fetid reek of nastiness still throttled the unwary

_With me wack foldedol diddle day_

_Wack fola stirrer oh, wack fola stirrer oh,_

_There's gunk within the jar."_

"They rhymed vocabulary with unwary?" winced Lucius, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes.

The youngsters scowled at him and went on,

"The pungent odour spread itself until it filled the castle

and poor Professor Snape had to deal with all the hassle

like a many headed monster it spread itself so mutable

while Snape must stalk behind it glowering and inscrutable

_With me wack foldedol diddle day_

_Wack fola stirrer oh, wack fola stirrer oh,_

_There's gunk within the jar._

Oh the evil potion monster was as nasty as Odessa

But it was no match for our heroic professor

He chased it back into the cauldron in a deathly hush

And then he dealt with it so well the Prince's royal flush

_With me wack foldedol diddle day_

_Wack fola stirrer oh, wack fola stirrer oh,_

_There's gunk within the jar!"_

The school was rocking hysterically with laughter; several glanced slightly apprehensively at Professor Snape but he was crying with laughter in common with most of the staff, leaning on Professor Black; in fact both of them and Professor Lupin propping each other up.

Seagh waited for the laughter to die down before he came on to finish the concert with 'Old Lang Syne' ; and proceeded to address the audience again.

"It was aye Mei and Jade as did most o' the organisin' and we'll a' be please syne ony o' ye would care tae buy the words o' the wee song ye jist heard in aid o' the day school for them as dinnae get nae education and thank ye to tae the owder ones fer borin' ye enough that ye liked oor efforts better" and he bowed.

The 'older ones' were not amused; but everyone else was.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

After the concert things went back to normal with nothing much exciting happening.

David had to mediate in a small dispute in the fourth – Dell and friends having already caused the participants to have hysterics over their dispute being called a stupid storm in a cauldron – that had started with the accidental squirting by Slytherin Clarice Sterne of the humourless Gryffindor Jacqueline Johnson with stinging juice in Herbology, which blew up into a quarrel over whether it was intended or not, degenerated into a long sulk, followed by Jacqueline enchanting badges to read 'Clarice Sterne Stinks'.

David pointed out that not only was this not in the spirit of interhouse co-operation it scarcely made the school look good to wear such things into Hogsmeade – he had been apprised by Dell that Jacqueline intended doing so and had leaped before she left– and questioned both severely.

Pointing out that he was not much of a legilimens but could see enough to see that Clarice was telling the truth he suggested they stopped acting like first year weevils, apologised nicely to each other and put such a storm in a cauldron behind them.

It was part of the daily round for a Head Boy, like rounding up and evicting the swarm of fairies that had taken refuge in the castle out of the wet, which would not have been so bad had they not nested in the boot locker in everyone's outdoor boots.

David found them a little frequented box room and left them infiltrating a crack by a warm chimney that went through it.

Bad weather was always a nuisance.

Lynx however was equal to the occasion and she and the Junior Marauders organised a massive game of Hide-and-seek.

When Mary-Anne and Heather failed to turn up by teatime there was almost a real panic; until Lionel recalled he could track them through his bloodsong.

They were fast asleep in the massive cauldron in the potion dungeon where they had hidden – with a pack of exploding snap to while away the time – but as nobody had found them they got bored and dozed off.

The New Marauders were only thankful they had not hidden in their secret door cupboard and got lost in dark scary passages!

The next small excitement was a visit from Offsted.

David designated Lionel and Ross to help show the visitors around and Krait – who knew more about secondary muggle schools than any one else – firmly set up dissilusionments and confunded them when she ran out of ideas.

They gushed suitably about perfect surroundings and excellent equipment and knowledgeable staff and polite clever children.

They were duly fed and got rid of.

Had St Jodoc's been visiting for the hockey match, there might have been more muggle equipment about; but it had been agreed with the state of the weather in Scotland that travelling to Devon for the winter term was a better thing to do.

"DOH!" said David when they had gone "We could have taken them through the ruddy cupboard and shown them over Rowan House."

"Never mind" said Krait "I expect they'll come again; we'll do it then."

Three upper sixth of last year had been lost to the hockey team, so Willow put Abraxus in as a definite player, added Seagh because he played Hurley, and Dell because he had the idea of playing hurley against the fey if need be; and had worked hard on hockey. Jade Snape was reserve. They borrowed Madam Jones as their coach again from her teaching post at Rowan House where she taught English Language and Literature and enchantment theory for those interested.

And after the worry about Scottish weather, the match was rapidly snowed off with freak weather after only one half; so the teams included their reserves, split each into two and played a hilarious and impromptu round-Robin of six-a-side softball hockey in the gym.

The Yule ball was coming round again with all its trials and tribulations. The older ones were mostly sorted out; Kinat took Garjala because she was fun but most of the others had permanent girlfriends. Erich took Fenella again in the same spirit of friendship; though going together two years running set a few tongues wagging!

Sephara asked Fish, in the absence of Neville; he was a nice boy after all. Elisa and Francis Davenport were to go together again; the ball last year had kindled something more than a friendship.

And that led to a revelation.

Francis had been being very quiet and so had Ralph; and Elisa finally managed to get them to speak out in the MSHG.

"We got a letter from Dad" said Francis "He owes a lot of money to Mr Borgin; and Mr Borgin said he could pay off some of his debt if he did a favour for another customer, but if he didn't he'd foreclose."

"And what was this favour?" asked Krait.

"We were to make sure that the goblins at Hogwarts knew they were marked for punishment; and to scare them into leaving" said Francis.

"Ah" said David; and quickly explained what he had heard about goblin coursing.

"Oh" said Kinat.

"Crumbs!" said Francis "I say, we can't be part of that, but if we don't, our dad gets beaten up and we get kicked out of out home too."

"No you don't" said Abraxus "THIS is one we get Uncle Lucius in on; he'll sort out your dad's debt and find a better way for him to pay it off. David, shall Hawke and me go through to Malfoy Manor now?"

"Yes, do" said David "You're not an exam year; if you miss a lesson or two it don't matter. I'll get you out of detentions if you get any for sleazing off."

"Cheers" said Hawke; and the twins wandered into the toilet stall that led to the cupboard at Malfoy manner.

They returned in time for lessons and hissed in Parseltongue that Lucius was on to it now and so was Draco and Narcissa was huge enough with this pregnancy to have twins if they hadn't revelaspelled her and found it was only one tiny girl.

Once the two Davenports had been apprised of this their relief was so tangible they were soon in detention for joining forces to jinx Porteous and Derwent on the principle that they were the type to like goblin coursing.

Dione Parnassus asked permission of Severus to skip the ball; and he agreed.

"Spend the evening with your daughter" he said kindly.

"Thank you sir" said Dione. "I hope one day I get a husband as nice as you!"

Severus laughed gently.

"Oh I'm not nice!" he said "Even if I can chase pernicious potions back into their cauldrons and give them the royal flush!"

"That was a brilliant song… I'm glad you weren't offended."

"I'd be a fool if I was… those lads are clever and funny. A nice change for Ravenclaws. They aren't even too much of an unmitigated disaster zone in the potions dungeon."

"And it's nice now that nor am I….quite. you've taught me such a lot."

"DON'T go hero worshipping me, Dione, I'm crabby and a curmudgeon, misanthropic and sarcastic. I don't like people very much and I don't encourage them to like me. I have no patience, and I bite."

She laughed.

She had seen the Severus underneath.

Dell and co were – some of them at least – expected to go to the Ball this year.

Tim and Tamsin went together of course, and Callum and Cynner. Lionel agonised over Melody and Mary-Anne; and asked them if they'd go with him as a threesome.

They giggled.

"Why not?" said Melody "It's no worse than the Malfoy twins threatening to have one of them come in drag which they did, so I heard, before Abraxus brought Myrtle back to life."

"What about Alice?" said Lionel.

"Och I'll go wi' Ralph Davenport" said Alice "He's shy so he willnae bother tae ask anyone; and he's a' richt. He may no' be material for the group but he gey needs encouragement"

Tim's robe was second hand and rather showed it; Cynner's was too since her mother was too proud to let Callum's mum spend much for her. But then there was Krait, whose sewing classes for people with gowns in need of cheering up had become a yearly feature, save for the last year when she had been so ill in her pregnancy with small Severus Neville who was still a trifle sickly himself. And even so she had still helped some people out. The class was very popular.

David was more interested in his nunlings than the Ball; he and Ellie were sorted out with each other long since and Ellie threw warm support behind David's attempts to rescue children in an intolerable situation.

He spoke to Krait to get help and advice; and Krait was an enthusiastic accomplice.

"It's all highly illegal in our world and theirs" she said "We had some trouble over stealing Anne, though at least her solicitor was a reasonable chap; Severus went and demanded to know what kind of man he was letting a child go off to a place like that. Mr Petherick got out his best whisky and the two of them plotted together; he was fascinated by the idea of our parallel world and we've retained him as solicitor for both schools" she grinned "Sev said he was like a kid in a sweetie shop watching simple magical spells, and was ready to do almost anything for Severus once the poor old boy discovered that we don't have sinusitis because Sev can brew a potion to cure it. Almost fell on his neck – especially when it worked immediately. Anyway, he's working with Hermione to track magical kids near substations too. I'm inclined to talk to him about how to deal with this situation – give me a day or two?"

"All right" said David.

Mr Petherick was enchanted to visit Hogwarts, exclaiming with joy and breathing

"IS he for real?" about Peeves who had to be nosy – and had of course to make comments about Mr Petherick's conventional attire.

"I think, Mr Fraser" said Mr Petherick, over tea and biscuits "That for the majority of the children the best thing to do would be for the Rowan House School to write a carefully drafted rude letter to the parents asking what they mean by arranging to send their children there and then failing to do so; and to write equally er, snippily to the Rowan Tree school along similar lines accusing them of poaching pupils. This will work for those who have not been there long like the two second years, Miss er, Murchison whose parents are on a cruise and Miss Penther whose mother is in a coma. Nothing like the threat of legal action to get people on the defensive, dear me no! Those ones all started there this year so we have some good reason. Miss Cook, Miss Beckham and Miss Friend are a different matter. Dear me, if there was a law against parents doing ill by their children I believe half the country would be in gaol. But the four I think we can arrange – especially with a bit of this confundment – how TERRIBLY irregular that is, I wish I had it at my disposal t use on certain barristers, to have them just come naturally to the other school after Christmas. Those who would be spending Christmas at school, that's all but Miss Branch I think, we can PROBABLY have transferred almost immediately because of 'getting to know some of their peer group with whom they should have been in an informal situation."

"He's very good isn't he?" said Krait.

"Exceptionally" said David "I half wish I'd had him representing me when they took me off Gran and forced me into that orphanage."

"I would undoubtedly have served your best interests" said Petherick "My hands were somewhat tied over little Annie Collins because of the wishes of her blood relative; but it was a simple matter to explain that she had made a mistake over the prospectus. Especially as the school used to be a Catholic orphanage…. A little misdirection, all part of a solicitor's job in his client's interests."

"What about the oldest ones?" asked David "I'm not leaving them there for one more cheerless Christmas."

"Well then they will have to abscond on the first day of the holidays – then they are not TRUANT which makes a difference to the moral ground they take; and, let me see, employ a legal representative to sue the school for ill treatment and their parents for moral turpitude and neglect. And we let the parents know that the charges against them are dropped if they just let their children go to a school of their choice."

"Bethany's father isn't bad, just an idiot" said David. "Domine, could you just tell him like it is? I should think he might listen."

Severus nodded.

"And I'll also point out that she has to lead the others out and THEN he can join with her suing the school. From what the girl has said to Diccy he appreciates honour and leadership and all that. He just hasn't realised she's more than about ten. Too intellectual. We should get on fine. He's a Physicist and Mathematician."

"Oh, enough said" said David. "D'you think he's teach at Rowan House? Will Pepper is teaching physics as well as chemistry but he's not happy to go to higher levels; and Fenella really needs backup with higher mathematics too."

"That I'll ask him too" said Severus.

That then was in hand; and when Severus made a trip to see Professor Friend he discovered the man deeply distressed that his little girl had been badly treated and confused over why she had not told him.

"Perhaps because she was afraid you might not believe ill of nuns" said Severus "Or because she didn't think it would get past whatever Theorem you were working on."

Professor Friend had the grace to look uncomfortable about the latter!

Severus liked the man, though found him a little exasperating in his inability to recognise real life or even the passage of time. It was a shock to him to discover that Bethany was fifteen. However he was intelligent and open minded about magic, and Severus had to leave in a bit of a hurry since they spent so long discussing energy and the quantum applications of magical effects. He did however extract a promise to back Bethany and to come as a teacher in her new school's sister establishment.

And Severus had every intention of fetching him to make sure he got there.

It would also, if he lived in, make sure he ate properly – which he did not at present – and was on the spot to be where he was supposed to be.

All that was left that was important that term was the ritual involving Erich and Tala; and the blood group convened in Myrtle's loo at four o'clock in the morning.

"This is HIGHLY irregular" said Hermione.

"So's getting to be a werewolf because your dad screwed around and then absconded" said Erich "Stop being middle-aged, Hermione and think of the applications to people like Moonie if we can pull this off. You want to help HIM don't you even if Tala is nothing to you?"

"Well, yes, but…"

"But nothing" said Erich. "You'd do for Ron what I'm doing for Tala, wouldn't you, if he'd been bitten?"

"Well yes of course, if I thought it had any chance of working, but that's a….Erich Snape Von Strang, she's only a little girl!"

"Time will change that" said Erich softly "And sometimes when you look into someone's eyes you KNOW…. Yes, I may be wrong; but I still would not pass up the opportunity to help a child in distress. Or what is everything we stand for about?"

Hermione flushed.

"You are right Erich" she said in a small voice. "We are here to help the weak."

Severus had set up two beds for the main participants and a series of frightening looking tubes.

"Krait, Hermione, I want you inserting needles into the right places simultaneously to me on my mark" he said "we have picked this extraordinary time of day because the moon, invisible though it is when it rises as the dark of the moon, is also on the other side of the earth right now and so exerts the least influence. Ready? Three-two-one MARK!"

tubes went in, to a little cry of pain from Tala.

"It shouldn't hurt any more now, my dear" said Severus kindly "You will feel weak and strange and a little light-headed is all." Erich reached over to take her hand.

"I'll look after you" he said. She smiled tremulously but trustingly at him.

"Oh" said Hermione softly "Yes, I suppose he would know."

And the blood flowed in and the blood flowed out.

Erich obediently swallowed blood replenishing potions laced with wolfbane and the bloodgroup synchronised heartbeats to help Erich; and presently Tala's blood was spurting out on the same beat. Severus was running it into one of the baths near the shower units so he could measure how much there was – he had marked calibrations on the side of the bath for every gallon – to make sure her system was flushed entirely. It was slow; Severus had insisted that the changeover must not be too fast, and had in fact calculated an arithmantically auspicious rate of blood flow, taking into account such factors as the time it took to make a complete change to werewolf and back, and the period between the moon being full but not yet risen and the time it appeared over the horizon. It had been a tricky calculation but Severus was satisfied that he had it correctly calculated. Krait had at his request checked his figures and could not argue with them.

And the blood flowed in; and the blood flowed out.

He had cast Scarpin's Revellaspell on Tala before he began; and as the blood reached a certain mark he cast it again. He grinned a brief exultant grin.

"On my mark for tubes out and episkey spells….three, two, one MARK" he said.

And his helpers had the tubes out and the wounds healed without even bothering with wand or word.

"Did it work?" said Erich eagerly, trying to sit up and being pushed firmly back down by David.

"It did" said Severus "I am extremely pleased. The wolfbane combined in such quantities with fresh blood has entirely defeated the disease that would have manifested its unpleasant effects within a short time."

"He said you would have become a werewolf soon but it ain't going to happen any more" said Krait, seeing the child's incomprehension. "Sometimes Severus needs a little translation."

"You get used to him" said Erich smiling. "Thanks Dad; thanks people. We blood her and Seagh in now?"

"Might as well" said Krait "It's damn nearly breakfast time. I'm glad I posted a note cancelling MSHG this morning."

"Tala, I need to ask you a favour" said Severus.

"Oh sir, yes, anything!" said Tala worshipfully.

"It's wise to ask what it is before making rash promises" said Severus dryly. "I believe that your blood might cure werewolves now, if properly prepared. May I take some – when you have recovered of course – of your new clean blood to perform experiments on?"

"Oh yes sir!" said Tala, happily.

The bloodgroup then had only the ceremony to join her as well as Seagh to the rest of them; and Hermione, usually the one to have reservations about new people, accepted Seagh as Severus' adopted son, and Tala wholeheartedly. Hermione saw Erich as one of the more sensible of her bloodkin, the more cautious of the group; and was glad for him that he had found a special person even though he would have to wait for her to grow up. Erich was not about to rush into things. Hermione approved of Erich; which as Severus said laughingly to Sirius was more than could be said of the way she looked on many of them.

Sirius was hoping more than anything that this cure would work on Remus Lupin; to be joined by blood to his old friend would just be the most special thing. Then, with Harry representing his father, only Peter Pettigrew would be excluded; and though Sirius had managed to forgive Peter his betrayal and to pity him, that was NOT something that was acceptable. Peter was no longer a Marauder. His new nickname was on the Marauders' shield as a symbol of reconciliation; but that was as close as Sirius felt like getting to him.

But there were two new members and the blood sang to welcome them; and the bloodgroup skipped main breakfast and feasted in Myrtle's loo on cocoa and toast and jam and were happy.

It is true that those of them who were students were not much use in class; but so near to Yule this showed up less than at almost any other time.

And if Krait, Severus and Sirius were a little snippier than usual in THEIR classes, well, none of them were noted for excessive tolerance of the usual fooling around that accompanied this time of year so it passed unremarked.

With Tala sorted out, and the nunlings in the capable hands of Mr Petherick and Diccy and Dobby, who could both be trusted to give coherent messages, David might enjoy the ball with Ellie.

"Your last ball here" Ellie reminded him.

"Crumbs, yes!" said David, slightly shocked. Suddenly it came home to him that he had only two terms of school to go; and there was a momentary feeling of being bereft. Other than his very early years, before the drunk driver had robbed him of his parents, his small sister and his life's stability all in one instant he had associated Hogwarts and happiness as the same thing. As, he supposed, had Harry, who could not even really remember his parents. It would be a wrench to leave the mainstay of his existence.

But there was more than Hogwarts, he reminded himself.

There was Ellie; who would leave school a year after him, and then they would get married. And there was his teaching job, and refereeing jobs too. He had refereed two matches over the summer holidays – one was an exchange as a favour to another referee who wanted to go on holiday – and had enjoyed it immensely, even though he had to use langlock wandlessly - to avoid contravening the rules - on two players to break up a quarrel before he sent them both off.

And there was always the fight against Odessa. Hogwarts had been a bastion in protecting the wizarding world because nobody else would, save the few and disparate members of the Order of the Phoenix. And half of them were parents or staff, or so it seemed. But now there was a new, forward-looking government all solidly behind Harry Potter who was effectively the ruling prince of the Wizarding world, though none of them would ever mention this to Harry. And Harry and Draco had efficiently reorganised the aurors – with a lot of help from Kingsley Shacklebolt and Tonks Lupin – to be an efficient body based more on the muggle flying squad than the haphazard collection of individuals they had been. They were still individuals of course, with a lot of personal autonomy; it worked better that way. But there were squad meetings and pooled information and finally a well run office with dossiers that Harry had persuaded Alastor Moody to run. Retired he might be from the active side, but he was glad to interfere; and nobody knew the business of how aurors operated like a retired auror. And Moody's creative paranoia led him to happily spend hours cross-correlating facts and throwing up some surprising, but often enough accurate, connections between cases two aurors were puzzling over, and allowing both cases to break wide open.

Yes, there was plenty to do on leaving school; and plenty to give back to the world that had given him happiness after he had almost given up hope of it.

Accordingly David enjoyed his last ball, dancing almost every dance with Ellie, taking Madam Sprout and Madam McGonagall once round the floor each, and Madam Vector too because he liked her and Krait because he loved her like a sister. That turned into an 'excuse me' anyway just because Lionel Dell was cheeky and took a dare from Cynner Strong that he wouldn't interrupt the Head Boy's dance with Madam Malfoy.

David laughed and ceded his partner, leaving Krait to scold Lionel gently.

Even Peeves throwing water bombs did not dampen the spirits at the ball, although it did dampen their robes.

Willow deserted her partner – Abraxus – and beckoned to Peeves.

Peeves came, a little sulkily; he almost liked Willow, having been convinced that she had saved his life from a faulty wand some years before; and had begun a personal tradition of buying Peeves outrageous ties for Christmas.

"Peeves, you haven't invited me to dance" said Willow severely.

Peeves actually blushed!

"Well will yer? Dance?" he said.

"Delighted, sir" said Willow.

Peeves was delighted, and not a little subdued; he had never been invited to dance before. He stumbled round the floor in a bit of a daze.

Willow was in Peeves' mind totally wonderful; and he was as close as a poltergeist could come to being in love.

He later hissed at Sirius

"You treat that girl right or I shan't half have it in for you"

Sirius looked down his nose.

"I fully intend to" he said.

David departed for Rowan House to welcome new nunling arrivals the morning after the Ball, with Ellie along to meet Bethany and Corinne so that they would know at least one female prefect at Hogwarts. They were to stay in Rowan House for the Holiday – Bethany's father was joining her – to help their friends settle down too.

The contingent sent officially arrived first; Krait had gone along as Mr Petherick's assistant and chaperone with her hair scraped into an Eva Peron bun and glasses perched on her nose to confund the Mother Superior where legalese failed. The four girls were excited at the idea of both escaping and of being in a school where magic was real and they would get to see it working!

David saw them welcomed and then slipped away with Diccy, Dobby, and Beloc to muffle apparation sounds – as house elves did better than anyone – to use spells to unlock the main door and collect the other three girls from where they had gathered with their baggage.

"David Fraser" he said to the tall, pretty girl who was leading the other two "Head boy at Hogwarts."

Bethany grinned.

"And a fine thing for a head boy to be mixed up in!" she said with mock severity "I'm Bethany – this is Katharine, and Corinne. I should think if the Abbess caught you hanging, drawing and quartering would be suitable for a first offence for contaminating girls by talking to them."

David grinned.

"I spent several years in a Catholic Orphanage before I escaped to Hogwarts" he said. "So did Madam Malfoy who's aiding and abetting me. Are you ready?"

They nodded.

David took them outside so the door would show as having been unlocked to avoid any question of how they had got out; then with a house elf each holding a girl's hand they apparated to just outside Rowan House.

And then it was all down to Mr Petherick.

oOoOo

David was not the only one breaking and entering.

Arjelan had patiently instructed all of Lionel's group for certain illicit activities over the holidays. Melody, Callum and Cynner were – to their disgust – out of the plot since they were to go ski-ing with the Snapes; though as Callum said it would be a lot of fun. And Arjelan and Cholaka dared not raise suspicions by not returning to Nottingham.

Alice was deliberately staying with Mary-Anne in London and nowhere near her mother, and they were to target Crassus Prince and Mrs Dell. The Tuthills and Heather were going to upset Mary-Anne's mother and Dell and Griggs had requested permission to stay in Hogsmeade for a few days – Dell's father had been so happy his son and nephew were getting on well and was glad to arrange a couple of rooms at the Three Broomsticks – and the boys planned to take the train into Glasgow to upset Alice's mother and her Inspector Boyfriend.

Dealing with magical people like Prince and Mary-Anne's mother were relatively easy. Spells dealing with muggles did not of course work, and spells to alert of magical intrusion did not work against physical lock picking. There was no intent to steal either and so no thiefly intent warnings might be activated – a spell one might have expected at the household of Mrs Green's ministry boyfriend.

As a matter of fact, her boyfriend was the selfsame Wallace Arbuthnot Baddock who had attempted to harangue Hermione in Diagon Alley had the children but known; and a loss of dignity to him was a terrible thing.

Alice, Mary-Anne and the Tuthills had discussed seriously the measures to take and had come up with black face soap, itching powder and something Callum had overheard as a measure Krait had used against Olive Hornby on Myrtle's behalf, dead fish hidden strategically.

Against Lionel's mother some similar measures could be used, but breaking in would have to be more carefully achieved, since there would be muggle anti- intruder devices. In the end they decided to stalk Ida Dell and her boyfriend and acquire a hair or two from places they had sat and use polyjuice potion. It was a joy that Ida visited a hairdresser and Tony had dandruff.

"These are going to taste GHASTLY" said Mary-Anne.

"Needs must" said Alice.

Black face they decided to eschew; and rubbed chilli juice in Tony's underwear instead of itching powder. The fish they scattered with joyful abandon.

Back in Scotland, Grigs had come up with the idea of a plumbing solution.

"There's this foam that sets hard under water" he said "If we fill up their sewer outlet pipes…"

Polyjuice potion was their solution too, except that they picked two random, and respectable men with moustaches, shaved, and dressed themselves in hired fancy dress policeman's outfits. The break in was disgracefully easy; while the couple was at the Police Christmas Ball

"You'd think a top policeman would be better than this!" said Grigs.

"Don't knock it" said Lionel.

They left a Weasley's Wizard Wheezes distant view-o-sneak to listen to the results.

The result was better than the boys might have hoped; Mrs Trumball was feeling sick. And there was worse; for the only plumber available was one whose son had been arrested for a trivial matter and subjected to much abuse and ridicule about his appearance – the boy was a punk – by the inspector.

The plumber charged through the nose for the repair.

The boys did it again for the Hogmanay Party – having made sure the plumber had an alibi at his own party.

And when the Inspector rang Archie Trumball to ask if he knew what his brat of a daughter was up to he was given the news that she was spending the Christmas Holidays with a school friend – in London.

Lionel's gang considered they had spent a very successful holiday.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

David was thinking that the return to school was going rather smoothly – Mary-Anne being chaperoned by Alice and so returning with aplomb on time and without missing anything – and Bethany and Corinne excited to be coming on the Hogwarts express and placed in the care of Lionel's friends.

He had not realised the events of the Offsted visit might be so far ranging.

He was approached by a rather forceful looking young lady accompanied by some eight girls all ranging in age around about that of second to fifth years.

"Ah, You're the Head Boy?" she said, thrusting out a hand "I'm Miss Henderson. I was recommended to visit your school by Offsted; I'm starting a new school for young ladies and apparently your school is a model institution, despite being co-educational."

David took her hand, murmuring how delighted he was.

Thank goodness Ellie was waiting with him as well as young Dell!

"Mr Dell, perhaps you would care to take Miss Henderson and her girls to the prefects' carriage" he said, absently confunding the woman to accept walking through a wall. None of the girls seemed to be sensitives, they had ignored several house elves. "Ellie, scoot to the Casimir Malfoys' and go through the Loo network to warn Albus" he hissed in Parseltongue, disguising it in the preliminary to a whistle to a wart – Jade Snape as it happened who of course heard and understood what he had said. "Miss Snape, collect a few more warts and weevils and help these young ladies with their baggage."

"Yes Fraser!" said Jade happily. "You girls joining us or just visiting?"

"Just visiting; we'd not like to be with boys actually" said one girl a year or so older than Jade "My sister thought it would be a good idea to start a school as none of the ones near us are any good."

Jade grinned.

"Oh boys are all right; it's handy to have somebody around to point and laugh at and boys are most awfully good for that" she said. "Both my parents teach at our school so I know what it's like having a grown up who's related to you; they pick on you tougher in class of course and you have to be ever so much more formal just so they can't be accused of favouritism. Have you found that yet with your sister?"

"No; but you're quite right of course" said the girl. "Jo Henderson; this is Melissa Bassett, known as 'Fred' of course; Sue Lindon, Beth Rogers, and the others we only met first today too."

Jade grinned. She had got them through the barrier without them noticing.

"Jade Snape, related to half the school. Abraxus, stop eating Myrtle a minute and give me a hand, these girls are visiting us."

"Brat" said Abraxus lazily.

He felt her blood call however and he and Myrtle and Dell managed to get Miss Henderson and her girls comfortably installed and quietly _stupefied _ for the journey.

"Ah well" said David when he finally got on "Through the cupboard into Rowan House then back again and on the ordinary train before you can say confunded."

As if having a girls' school on board wasn't bad enough the train journey hit a bumpy ride, and came to a stop.

David went forward to the engine to see what the problem was. The Goblin driver was swearing, visibly upset.

"What's happened?" said David.

"Wizarding space don't normally coincide with the main line, we pass through muggle trains without neither noticing, see?" said the driver "But we just come through a fatal train crash; and that interferes with both worlds. Muggles and wizards all mixed up and here's this poor young thing made a ghost."

The young goblin woman all pearlescent and confused looked at David earnestly.

"Oh please sir, can you find someone to ask if St Mungo's people can go to the wounded? I don't think my parents are dead, and there are other wizarding folk from Nottingham."

David's heart skipped a beat; then recalled that Arjelan and Cholaka were already on the express.

"Can you hold the train a few minutes?" he said to the driver.

The goblin nodded.

David apparated to Malfoy Manor.

"Sorry to be rude Lucius, emergency" he apologised tersely for apparating indoors; and explained.

Lucius was up in an instant.

"I'll sort it out, David, don't worry" he said "Get back to the train."

David did so, confident that all would now be well for those people likely to die under muggle medicine who could be saved by wizards.

He found Cholaka and Arjelan crying over the goblin girl – young woman, really.

"We know Vaggara" said Arjelan "It's so sad! Her parents will be all right won't they?"

"I would hope so" said David "Lucius Malfoy has called in St Mungo's."

"Thank you" said Vaggara "What am I supposed to do?"

"I think the best thing is for you to come on to Hogwarts and be one of our school ghosts" said David. "Uh… do you have a boyfriend who needs to be told?"

Vaggara shook her insubstantial head.

"No, there's nobody special" she said.

In a way that made it easier; but David would have moved heaven and earth to get hold of her body and help any lover of this poor girl to make the flesh sacrifice to bring her back, as Abraxus had done for Myrtle.

It was a sobering start to a new term, and a new calendar year too. But things like that happened; and not all disasters were caused by Tom Riddle and his Deatheaters. And if human wizards were on the train too it was unlikely to have been caused by those targeting goblins.

One must try not to be as paranoid as 'Mad-eye' Moody after all.

The girls' school was duly taken to the castle, greeted by people in sober academic gowns and were taken on a tour of the muggle classrooms and dormitories in Rowan House. Miss Henderson was taken aback at the concept of four posters – retained at the sister school as suitable – and Krait explained that it gave a child privacy if they required it but was more homely and less clinical than cubicles which were so reminiscent of hospitals.

"The hangings are regularly and thoroughly sanitised" said Krait "And each bed has its own low wattage light bulb because children are GOING to read in bed, and it's better not to risk their eyesight. And that way a lights' out can be enforced because it will show through even closed hangings a bit. We like to have rules that are common sense and then leave the interpretation of the spirit of them to the honour of the pupils. It's so character developing to encourage that sort of thing, don't you think?"

Miss Henderson was much impressed!

She sighed for the excellence of the laboratory equipment and efficient teachers – not that Professor Friend was efficient in any other respect – and explained that she had three other teachers under her at the moment teaching scientific studies, English and history and mathematics and music.

"And I teach languages" she said.

"But how enterprising!" exclaimed Krait "It is easy to achieve excellence purely by throwing money at a problem, but you are very brave, and I applaud your decision! I feel sure that if you wish to use our laboratory equipment from time to time we can arrange for your girls and their mistress to visit once or twice a term, or – as you are so far away – visit our sister school in London which is laid out almost identically!"

Miss Henderson was delighted; and said that she would certainly consider taking Professor Malfoy up on that offer as a London visit would not be too inconvenient.

It was another innocuous school to have ties with and Krait warmly hoped that both the London School and Hogwarts might have the pleasure of a games fixture when Miss Henderson had a large enough group of girls, and offered five-a-side hockey and cricket as informal games to give her girls some opposition.

Meanwhile Dione Parnassus was bursting with news for Severus.

"Oh sir, my father and I are getting on so much better!" she said "And as I'm never going to be an academic genius after wasting my time being a miserable cow I asked him if he could find someone a bit like you for me to marry because…because…." She blushed "Doing those sort of things Kevin did to me would perhaps be nice with somebody nice."

"Er, it is supposed to be a mutual pleasure" said Severus embarrassed that she had just almost said she would not mind going to bed with him. "I would be er, careful in choosing someone however on grounds that they are LIKE someone else; no two individuals are the same you know."

"Oh but daddy found someone called Crassus Prince who isn't married and he looks awfully like you and Daddy says he's some kind of relation to you too!" said Dione. "I've said something awfully wrong haven't I?"

"Me dear child if your father tries to marry you to Crassus Prince I shall rip his gizzards out" said Severus grimly. "My dishonourable uncle has murdered one inconvenient wife, Willow Prince's mother, and was left by his second wife and the child of that marriage so neglected I am rearing him – little Tarquin, whom you know. He has scattered bastards throughout the wizarding and muggle worlds and I have contact with five of them in addition to Willow. He is as Crass as the first part of his name. In him, venality and sloth combine in a turgid combination of repellent harmony that only fail to produce so profound an effect of moral turpitude equal to that of Voldemort for the failure on the part of Prince to have any kind of ambition, loathsome or otherwise in any part of his life save that of sexual gratification. Were his private parts self motile and separate from his whole, nobody would notice any difference."

Dione blinked.

"I guess the Severus-litotes comment to that is 'so you don't like him much'" she said.

Severus managed a reluctant chuckle.

"Well you have come on well to retain a sense of humour over a let down" he said. "I'll go and talk to your father."

Humphrey Parnassus was horrified to hear the unvarnished truth about Crassus Prince.

"She said she wanted a husband as nice as you because you were an ideal" he sighed. "I know girls can get crushes on teachers but I thought if I introduced her to a cousin – uncle you say? – of yours…."

Severus sighed.

"I'll put more work into finding out if there are older illegitimate brats of his" he said "Not that it's any guarantee that they're going to be er, nice husband material. Physical resemblance is little to go on – though why she'd think mine in any way desirable beats me!"

"She said your eyes are black pools of kindness but can gleam with fire in indignation" said Humphrey dryly "I suppose it's at least partly having someone prepared to be indignant on her behalf; I've not made much of a job of it."

"Well I suppose I should be the last person to shout at you for getting blinded and temporarily failing" sighed Severus "I almost let Harry down for being unable to rid myself of the dislike I felt for his father when I looked at him. Those of us who fail but are given a second chance are much blessed, Humphrey; much blessed indeed."

Severus decided not to try conventional methods any more and got Willow, Ed and Callum together to do a blood-trace. Callum was much relieved that this was all he had been summoned over; he was half afraid the prescience of Professor Snape might have discovered the plans for Albert Jackman he and Cynner had been hatching over the holidays. He was taking enchanting to OWL level and with Cynner's arithmancy they were planning on turning Jackman's bed post into a portkey and then the step he would end up on, the flagstone he next appeared on and the newel post he was almost bound to blunder into for being dizzy by then before hurling him back onto his own bed.

He should be feeling quite unwell by then.

Severus however seemed to have no idea that such mischief had been planned and required Callum only to bleed gently into a cauldron.

This Callum was quite happy to do and went away after donating a drop of blood happy that Cousin Severus thought he had a clear conscience.

Severus was fairly sure from the boy's wary manner that he did NOT have a clear conscience at all; but decided he did not need to know about it.

There was no real vice in the boy and if caught out at whatever it was would take punishment like a man.

The combined skills of blood magic and geomancy were remarkable in combination, reflected Severus, who had asked Willow to help with the geomantic formulae, because she was good at it.

And that was almost as much the strength of their group as the blood joining itself; the ability to mix and match skills and talents, to combine different disciplines not normally used together.

"We got three more siblings I see" said Ed Dinalt laconically. He had asked to stay and watch how this was done and Severus had permitted it. Ed was a sensible boy who was taking his OWLs this year.

"Apparently" said Severus. "Well now I have locations I can dig into names. And with one at the wrong end of Diagon Alley and one in Obscura Alley maybe help out some too. My uncle and your father is really the most despicable of creatures!"

"Ya noticed" said Willow, also laconically.

The name 'Alexander Chang' was one Severus vaguely recalled; and looking it up discovered that the boy had been a Slytherin not long after he, Severus, had taken up a teaching post at Hogwarts. He recalled the boy as hard working and a fair potioneer, faintly Oriental and – presumably – related distantly to Cho Chang and the ubiquitous Mei. He looked further and found that the boy's mother was the sister of Cho's father.

Alexander had done reasonably well for himself and worked as a researcher for wizarding wireless. He lived currently in Nottingham. Severus did not recall seeing any similarities between himself and young Chang; but of course he had scarcely been looking for any; and only Willow and Ed so far closely resembled him.

He travelled to Nottingham over the weekend.

The major local news was the tragic train-crash that had killed several goblins and two witches. Lucius had at least already confirmed that Vaggara's parents had survived and had told them that she was a ghost at Hogwarts now. It was some small comfort to them that she had been invited by so famous a campaigner for goblin rights as David Fraser. Severus read the list of those killed and injured in the 'Nottingham Nostradamus', the local paper; it would be a waste of time looking here if Alexander was in St Mungo's.

As it happened he was in St Mungo's; having been travelling with the crowd to cover the concert most of them were going to see, a new group called 'The Broomstick Boys' who sang quidditch songs. The group had been quick to announce that a percentage of their take would go towards relief funds for the victims of the crash, which had done their popularity no harm.

Severus re-apparated to London and went visiting. He took chocolate frogs.

Everyone liked chocolate frogs.

Alexander looked wary.

"Professor Snape?" he said "I conjecture from the facial scarring that someone blew up a cauldron at you even more catastrophically than Charlie Weasley."

Severus gave a rueful grin.

"It was a pupil….error" he said "A fire of dragon's heart blood…"

Alexander winced.

"VERY nasty" he said "What was a child doing with that?"

"Knocking it over in the middle of the night while looking for alihotsy to serve to her rival in love" said Severus "She was expelled… not for doing it but for failing to own up. My wife - we went together to investigate a noise – went into labour early, could have killed my daughter…."

"I didn't know you were married sir."

"Since your time… you like chocolate frogs?"

Alexander looked at them suspiciously.

"Are they poisoned?" he asked warily.

Severus laughed.

"Merlin's beard, yes, it was your class irritated me so much I first threatened to poison them in the fourth!" he said "I make it a tradition now… it concentrates their mind wonderfully on antidotes. No they're not poisoned. I wanted to talk to you about your father."

Alexander's face went flat and hard; and suddenly with the glittering black eyes Severus saw the resemblance.

"I don't have a father. He promised marriage and then abandoned my mother when he had had his fun with her."

"She's not the only one. The bastard has reneged on nine other women that I know about and has divorced one wife and murdered another – not that I can prove that. I'm hoping to get the chance to kill him one day."

"Get in the queue Professor. What's YOUR interest in him?"

"He's my uncle. And I didn't know I had one until his oldest legitimate child – she of the murdered mother – turned up looking more like me at that age than I did. I didn't know you were my cousin; I wasn't looking for any."

"Would it have made a difference to how you treated me?"

"Then? I was too callow to realise I must be harder on relatives. I wasn't actually much good as a teacher. I think I've learned. You did well enough in your NEWTs though so maybe it's in the blood more than my teaching."

"Oh I'd say you improved in imparting education over the time I was there… I didn't like you though."

"I went out of my way to be disliked. I had my reasons. And as you are my kin I'll let you know that it was because I was a double agent, a deatheater who reported to Dumbledore. I didn't want to be liked. It kept people back, kept my secrets safe. I like surviving you see; it's a Slytherin habit."

"Hmm" said Alexander "I find my respect for you unwillingly increases. It can't have been very easy."

"And that's a fine exercise of litotes" said Severus.

"What about my father?"

"The fact that he exists… I'm just trying to track down all my relatives. It seemed a good idea for us all to know each other…. this crash was tragic, we've a new ghost at Hogwarts from it, the express went through the crash you see."

"Yes and I get to miss the concert…. Not I think that that is such a great tragedy since the detriment to my career is balanced by the advantage to my eardrums."

"Are they really that dire? I haven't heard them."

Alexander shuddered.

"You have me at an advantage then, sir. Or should I call you cousin?"

"Cousin or Severus… I'm not fussy."

"This Severin Prince fellow… is he a relative of ours?" Alexander asked abruptly. "He seems to have sense, even if he hides rather theatrically."

"He's a relative; he's shy" said Severus equally abruptly "I know him well enough. He got half blackmailed into serving on the parliamentary council and he made his anonymity a condition of acceptance."

"Severus….Severin…. I wonder if I'm barking up the wrong tree?" said Alexander softly.

"Well until and unless I know you better I am going to leave your conjecture as exactly that" said Severus.

"Well I'll come up and visit" said Alexander. "I'll maybe get more joy than from my Chang relations."

"What, never met the ubiquitous Mei Chang and her gang of rapscallions?" said Severus. Alexander shook his head. "They're young hellions" Severus went on, laughing "They knock around with one of my adopted daughters so I have to drop on them hard if I catch them…. They rarely get more than two days into a new term before they get up to something, this term they managed to have races at midnight across the floor of the Great Hall on land yachts, makeshift things of wheels and a sail – several bedsheets suffered for their art – with wind summoning spells to propel them. Wind summoning spells, I ask you, they're second year, little horrors!"

Alexander laughed.

"What did you do? I presume you caught them."

"I acquired a copy of muggle maritime law and compelled them to learn the section pertaining to yachts and pleasure craft, and gave them a viva voce exam on the matter. That kept them quiet for almost three days mugging that up; and now if the little horrors decide to race sailing yachts they shouldn't at least irritate any muggle authorities."

"You've lightened up and become more flexible since my time."

"Voldemort's dead and cannot sue" said Severus.

oOoOo

Albertine Gregg was a couple of years younger than Alexander; and had never, it appeared, been to Hogwarts. As she lived in Obscura Alley, Severus went and asked Kordach if he knew anything about her.

"Albertine Gregg? Daughter of Eglantine Gregg, is she not?" said Kordach.

A few years ago that would have been 'innit' at the end of the sentence, Severus reflected. Kordach was working hard to fulfil his ambitions.

"I don't know" said Severus.

"What's she done?" asked Kordach.

"So far as I am aware, nothing; I'm tracing extraneous relatives of mine. She's one of them."

Kordach snapped his fingers.

"O'course, that Prince fellow…banned him from my establishments after that, should have noticed the resemblance… though if you don't mind me saying so, even with the scar there's something about you makes you better looking… refinement, I think that's it…he's good looking but it's in that coarse sort of way some women go for. Dunno – I mean, I have no idea why. Eglantine, she was one of my girls; half goblin, good-time girl in a casino, one of the best. But if any of the clients get a girl with child I expect them to do the proper thing you know? At least give the girl as good a gift as he can afford even if he won't acknowledge a kid…. This Prince fellow he laughed. He coughed up some when I sent a couple of trolls round, but I wasn't having HIM back."

"Quite" murmured Severus. "And Eglantine?"

"Oh she's one of my top madams now" said Kordach, proudly "Escort only OF course, Professor, nothing low for a classy piece like Eglantine! Anyway, the kid didn't want to go into the business and I don't put pressure on my girls the way some do! Anyway, she runs a scrap and junk stall in the alley… nothing VERY illegal, all the muggle goods have warnings on them, and it's mostly ordinary sort of stuff anyway… she's a good girl, nothing for any cousin to be ashamed of."

Severus surveyed the junk stall; it had an eclectic selection of items on it.

The woman behind the stall viewed him with a frown. She had chestnut hair and a sallow complexion that might have been as much her goblin blood as her relationship to him; as might her black eyes. She had slight points to her ears, her nose was definitely on the long side – which might again have been either heritage – and large attractive eyes.

"You ain't Crassus Prince are you?" she asked in a dangerous tone.

"I am fortunate to have avoided that particular opprobrium" said Severus.

"Come again?"

"In short: no. For which I am glad. My uncle Crassus is what I should describe as an unmitigatedly loathsome manifestation of humanity but my wife and probably yourself would be contented with calling him a git."

"Yeah" she said. "Then… you're my cousin? Is that why you're here? I ain't I suppose posh enough for you."

"Oh on the contrary" said Severus "You have made yourself an honest trade and graft hard at it from what I can see; which lifts you many times above your revolting father. I am sorry you never went to Hogwarts."

She shrugged a thin shoulder.

"A part goblin? Back then? Even if ma could of afforded it I'd never have survived."

"That, alas, I fear is too true; and I was not in the position in those days, had I even known I had an uncle, let alone cousins, to have sponsored you."

She stared hungrily.

"You mean you would of done? If you'd known and was rich enough?"

"Blood is blood" said Severus. "You are one of many siblings. Three are currently at Hogwarts; three more await being old enough – I HAVE been able to sponsor them – and two others are past leaving age. One of whom I have not yet met. I hope, cousin Albertine, you will let me help if you ever have any problems; and will permit me to sponsor any children YOU have to Hogwarts. I will not insult you by offering you finances; you're doubtless as proud and stiff necked as the rest of us. But I hope you'll remember that family is there if needed."

She stared.

"Yeah okay" she said "I will. I am too proud to accept handouts; but if I need help I guess family is different. You're all right, even if you do talk posh."

"We speak the way we were raised to speak" said Severus. "I am Severus, by the way, Severus Snape; I teach at Hogwarts, Potioneering."

"You are posh then – a Professor and all!" said Albertine. "Cor, all that stirring and stinks… not for me!"

"No? Ah well…. A talent with it tends to run in the family but not in all. Even as there is a Weasley child who is not a disaster area when let loose with a cauldron. Well… I hope to get a family get-together at some point, perhaps over the summer… most of us live in and around London…. I shall write occasionally if you let me have your address?"

"I live in Malfoy Manor over there" – she pointed to the apartment block "It's not a bad place, specially since Lucius Malfoy put the fear of Dementors into his agent. Number sixteen I live."

Severus nodded.

"Then I'll keep in touch" he said.

It was hard to know what to say to her; one reason he had taken refuge in his pedantic tone that was an armour. She was from a different world; the one connection when she had shown the hunger for the education she had missed out on. But it was perhaps too late to make any kind of connection with her. Still, he should look out for her – because she was his cousin – and hope to get closer to any children that she might have.

One more to visit. He turned away to leave.

"Cousin Sev!" she called. He turned, making himself smile. "I had ter ask – was you Professor Spurious Snake on the broadcasts?"

The smile was broader, genuine.

"Indeed I was… I cultivate a reputation for sternness; Draco is such a clever boy – man now of course – and such wicked names he bestowed! My best friend is Starriest Crack…"

She laughed, delighted.

"Cor, it was a turn up for the book to find it were Draco Malfoy done it…. I had the Malfoys all pegged as deatheaters y'know! Then along comes old Lucius here too and starts sorting out the apartment block, and Draco Malfoy turn up with Harry Potter himself to deal with the scum down the other end!"

"Yes; much can be done now Voldemort is dead and gone forever" said Severus. "And, Cousin Albertine, I would be pleased if you were to pass on to me anything you see that aurors like Harry and Draco should be apprised of; I can get information to the right place."

She nodded.

"I'll do that" she said "Normal like I'd tell Kordach; he's seem mum and me all right. But reckon if you know top folks like that and they'll listen to you, it's best to tell you too. Cor, fancy that – I gorra cousin that knows gentry and such!"

Severus smiled.

"Your cousin Grace, my daughter, is married to Draco Malfoy. He's a second hand cousin to you too you know."

"Yeah? Well how about that! Well I shan't never get the chance to speak to the likes of him but it's nice to know" she hesitated "I'm glad you come to find me, Cousin Severus; I weren't sure if I was. But… well…. Guess it's nice to have family."

"Oh yes my child; it is" said Severus "Believe me I appreciate that more than you'll ever know."

She left the stall and ran over to him to give him an awkward hug.

Maybe he could find more of a connection than he realised; and he embraced her fiercely back.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Peter Thomson lived at the wrong end of Diagon Alley and according to the few records Severus had of him was about eighteen and a bastard.

The boy worked at Bobbin's Apothecary shop – one of their country wide chain – so presumably was a reasonable natural potioneer even if he had no qualifications. He had certainly never been to Hogwarts and Severus could find no record of him gaining even OWLs.

How bitter that was that a boy David's age, perhaps as talented should be overlooked.

He knocked on the door.

The ageing witch within went straight for her wand and tried to jinx him; Severus had a protection spell up and had disarmed her without even breaking stride but it was still a shock.

"I assure you I am not trying to sell anything" he said "My name is Snape, Professor Severus Snape."

She froze.

"Not Prince?" she asked dangerously.

"My mother's maiden name was Prince. I have discovered I have a cousin called Peter. Does he reside here?"

"You'd better come in" said the witch. "I'm Celestine Thomson; I had a bright pretty daughter called Emma. Until Crassus Prince came into her life."

"I recall Emma Thomson" said Severus "She was in the sixth when I started teaching… bright pretty girl, very talented at potions…. My subject. I liked her well enough to be rude to her and push her hard; one does not show any favouritism."

Besides she looked a little like Lily; enough to attract, enough to repel, he thought.

"Oh yes, she said her new potions master was hard, too demanding, didn't know he was good looking. You must have got the scarring since."

"Yes" said Severus "What happened, did she die in childbed then? That should not happen!"

"Oh no! She got pregnant by Crassus Prince and then he dumped her. Kid was distraught. I'd just lost my husband – Voldemort's gang the first time round – and she had the baby but after a few years, she took her own life. Couldn't stand the whispers. I moved down here with Peter; couldn't afford to keep up the house. And I raised him and taught him everything I could. He's a talented potioneer too."

Severus sat down hard and buried his face in his hands.

"I should have guessed when Willlow turned up, I should have looked earlier!" he cried, angry, angry at Crassus Prince, angry at himself. "My so-charming uncle! All the younger ones I have under my protection, but I couldn't manage to find the older one I could have helped! DAMN Crassus DAMN him to any kind of muggle hell, and may he rot with Voldemort!"

"I'll make tea" said Celestine. "Sounds like it's been a hard haul."

"I was undercover fighting Voldemort – back then as well as just now" said Severus in a tired voice "It was a little distracting. Heh, and my wife would say, that's Severus-talk for we were remarkably busy. She – she's Voldemort's daughter, we were working together to bring him down. Her cousins I helped rescue from an orphanage and David Fraser too; and my own cousin, David's age, is in need of education and I have let him down."

"Did you know he existed?"

"I didn't even know I had an uncle until his oldest legitimate daughter turned up at Hogwarts. She's seventeen. He married a muggle girl and killed her. He's divorced from his last wife; I'm raising their son. He's left at least nine women with illegitimate children on the way, probably more I know nothing of, there are abortion potions. The two oldest I could never have done anything for but….."

Celestine patted his shoulder.

"Well I apologise for going for you when you turned up, the resemblance is considerable…. But I can't see you have anything to reproach yourself for. If this Willow was legitimate, what cause had you to think he spread his bastards around?"

"A year later Ed started; he'd been adopted and if he hadn't looked like me I'd never have wondered…. Then I started poking around. But for kids younger than Willow. It was only recently I looked for older ones – last week in fact. And I SHOULD have looked earlier!"

"Perhaps. We make assumptions; as I made assumptions about you. You have come now; intentions count."

"They do sir" said a young voice "I heard most of that."

"Peter! What are you doing home?"

"I got fired. I was sick of brewing old mouldy-faces potions and him getting the credit and me being paid a wage to count beans. I asked him for a wage rise and you'd think I was demanding the installation of a casino and dancing girls in what he laughingly calls my office. That cupboard! So I told him straight I was doing most of his work and he said he'd take no cheek from me so I told him I was out. So he had the last word and said no, I was fired. So I came home and I've been listening because it seemed a bad moment to butt in. Are you a relative then sir?"

"I'm your cousin and I have a job for you right now" said Severus grimly "You are coming back to Hogwarts with me as my assistant potioneer and I will put you through the most stringent training you could possibly imagine; I will gripe at you and demand from you; and when I have finished you will take your NEWT in potions – and maybe other things too – and I will maybe in some way have made up to you for leaving you out in the cold when I could and should have made more effort."

Peter's eyes glowed.

"Truly? You will teach me? At Hogwarts? But then you must be Professor Snape, the world's pre-eminent potioneer!"

"It has been said" said Severus "I'm working on a cure for werewolves at the moment. Care to help?"

"A CURE? Not just Wolfbane?"

"A cure. I'll tell you all about it back at the castle if you care to come."

"Gran, do you mind?"

"You go boy; learn all you can" said Celestine "Yes, Severus Snape; this is your opportunity to make up for him missing out; not that I blame you anyway. YOU should not be responsible for your uncle's peccadilloes."

"Someone has to take responsibility" said Severus "Especially when his reputation leads to respectable witches attacking me on sight… no I bear you no malice, Madam Thomson. Had I been Crassus Prince and you had jinxed him into an unconscious tangle of limbs I think we would all have pointed and giggled – as Willow would say. Peter you have eight siblings yet to meet at Hogwarts and in the nursery; and two more grown up ones. I did a blood trace to find them all last week so I KNOW I have all of you – for now. All that lived to be born or survived childhood anyhow. Maybe some did not. I expect I had better advance you some pay; you'll want to see your gran has enough to live on in the meantime." He fished in his pockets for some coins. "A month in advance?"

Peter stared.

"You pay that for a month?"

"A trainee potioneer with training, I think it's a fair wage" said Severus. "You do get to live in after all."

"Oh NO sir, I did not mean – did you think I was asking more? No, I – I – this is more than twice what I was getting in Bobbin's, far more than I could have hoped!"

"Then he's a thief. If I find you're worth more I'll pay you more; I have to assume you've picked up the basic potions and little more."

"He makes me brew Felix and HE takes the credit. That's what pisses me off."

Severus' jaw dropped.

"You can brew Felix? Without formal training?"

"He taught me how; he does it by rote. But I found you get a better colour quicker if you put an extra widdershins stir in every six clockwise ones."

"You discovered that on your own? My boy you are possibly as great a genius as I. I double your pay forthwith" said Severus digging for more coins. "I'm afraid that's all I have on me… I'll sort it all out with a contract. And then let us see if we can make un untraceable poison and poison your father before he leaves any more women bereft, hmm?"

"That I like even better than fair pay" said Peter grimly. "My pretty little mummy wasn't strong enough to stand against public opinion but it never was her fault, it was his!"

"Quite" agreed Severus.

Poor pretty little Emma Thomson; like and yet not like Lily.

Lily would never have killed herself whatever the whispers; her son would have come first as Harry had come first.

As Krait had ignored, and still ignored, the whispers of the ignorant and malicious about Lilith.

He was a good looking lad, this Peter; and a nice age for Dione. He looked enough like the family mould with an aquiline nose, and straight black hair; but he had his mother's dark blue eyes, Severus thought, if he remembered correctly. It was hard to remember correctly, only that she had a superficial look of Lily with dark red hair and a way with potions.

Peter was quickly introduced around; and Willow took him firmly in hand.

If she had her way her disadvantaged brother would be doing NEWTs alongside her; and she told him firmly about Krait who had started her entire training in magic from the age of fifteen and STILL had seven NEWTs taken at the proper age, five of them 'O' grade.

Peter had the family stubborn streak to take THAT to heart and work, as Willow told Severus, until his toenails bled. Why hard work should make the toenails bleed Severus decided not to ask.

Callum Delaney Prince was released – briefly – from detention to meet his new brother but was spending most of his spare time – in company with Cynthia Strong – writing out one hundred times Walter de la Mare's poem 'The Listeners' – in its entirety – for the iniquitous journey of Albert Jackman who was still in the sick bay recovering from a very bumpy unexpected ride. The harshness of the punishment was for a failure to undertake certain safety measures and the occurrence of the very rare portsplinch that a properly set up portkey did not cause. True, Jackman had only lost his fingernails; and the worst portsplinch known had only caused the loss of three toes; but it was the principle of the matter as Krait said, it having been she who had heard Jackman yell and found an unauthorised Gryffindor lurking in the Slytherin dormitories. Cynner had owned up like a good 'un too, and Krait had praised her for that, and Callum for claiming to be alone in the sinning, before setting them both punishment.

"It was the best weird journey poem I could think of on the spur of the moment" she told Severus.

Krait also broke up a very noisy meeting by the castle ghosts debating whether or not they could accept Vaggara as a full member of their company since she was only a goblin.

"And I must say I'm ashamed of you!" she said, using the extraordinary transfiguration ability she had learned – for the purpose of hugging Myrtle – to knock Nearly Headless Nick's head to one side and poke the Fat Friar in his insubstantial stomach. "Sir Edward, I trust you were not a party to this unseemly Imbroglio, when your own descendant Cosmo was part goblin?"

"Just what I was telling them, my dear" said Sir Edward. "The good lady is undoubtedly eligible. I support her claim."

"I'm not sure I want to be associated with this bunch of snobs" said Vaggara.

"We've NEVER had a goblin Ghost!" said the Grey Lady.

"Huh, call yourself an intellectual?" said Krait scornfully "Nobody had ever been a ghost until the first one; nobody understood why chrysanthemums grow as they do until Madam Wenlock wrote about the Wenlock series. Things change; shit happens; life – or in your case unlife – goes on. What will you do if there's a goblin head boy or girl and you've refused the right to a goblin ghost to have full voting rights on the council?" and she poked the Grey Lady on the nose. The Grey Lady squealed.

"And THAT's unnatural!" she shrilled "For a live one to touch us!"

"Well for that you can blame me studying muggle sciences" said Krait, brightly "Wizards prefer in the main NOT to believe, it's why muggles have no difficulty keeping their arts secret from them; they prefer ignorance of science even as muggles prefer ignorance of magic. I study both. It's why I'm so dangerous. Vaggara, if this lot of buffoons treat you bad, you stick to Slytherin house with Sir Edward and Merope. They'll treat you with courtesy."

"Oh I intend to irritate this lot with my presence if they won't let me join in their playground games" said Vaggara "If they're too stuck up, I can disrupt as well as Peeves can."

"Spoken like a true Slytherin!" cried Sir Edward. "If treated dishonourably, put the boot in first and hardest!"

Krait grinned, that almost could be a Slytherin motto.

"Well whatever happens the rest of you decide it with the sort of decorum grown folk can manage" she said "You sound like a bunch of weevils in a playground fight; and some of us are trying to sleep. So shut it, all right?"

Most ghosts subsided into offended silence at that; which had rather been the idea. Nick opened his mouth and Krait wriggled her fingers suggestively.

He shut it again hurriedly.

He did NOT relish having his ghostly points undone.

He wasn't sure what would happen.

oOoOo

Dione was delighted to meet Peter; and to try, like Willow, to help him all she could, though as she confessed she was catching up herself that was less than some might.

Severus was delighted.

Until he overheard Dione explaining to Peter – who was agreeing with her – that Severus Snape was the most wonderful person in the whole world. That Peter went on to say that Severus was like the father he had never had moved Severus enough to quickly hurry out of earshot, but not before he had heard Dione say that he was being a wonderful father to the baby she had had forced on her too.

Severus adored little Ismenia as he adored all the children.

There was something so special in the unconditional love a child gave that was humbling in the extreme, and made one vow never to betray that love and trust.

He presumed Dione explained to Peter about her predicament; and in fact he was correct. Peter was a part of Krait and Severus' family; he was all right.

That she looked on him as 'all right' in the same way as someone like Willow, Severus had not expected.

He sighed that there seemed to be friendship growing, but no romance.

Peter hardly had time for romance anyway.

His potioneering education was wide but not full, and he was working through every potion in the 'Magical Drafts and Potions' before even starting on 'Advanced Potioneering'. He had read everything Severus had ever written to the 'Transactions of the Learned Society of Potioneers' – he collected Mr Bobbin's copy from the bin before the weekly _evanesco_ dealt with it – and had a scrapbook of things he found interesting. Mostly letters and articles by Severus. His understanding of some obscure points was exceptional; but he had never brewed swelling solution.

In other lessons he showed an average appreciation for Transfigurations, was quite good at charms, was knowledgeable but not talented beyond normal in Herbology and declared that so far as magical animals were concerned their pickled remains interested him more that when they were on the hoof. He showed an interest in DADA partly because of his granfather's murder; and partly – it has to be said – because he took a professional interest in Professor Lupin in light of the fact that Severus was letting him help to brew the various experimental antidotes. Ulric Rolf too sat in on these sessions with great eagerness; Severus had found him a room as live-in experimentee and had sorted out the all-body hair loss that had accompanied the first and only partially successful experiment.

Ulric Rolf was now at the same state Tala had been at; in that he was only likely to tip into being a werewolf if he went into the direct rays of the moon. It would have been a fuller cure but only with permanent baldness of every part of the body; and Severus did not think that acceptable.

Ulric disagreed; he thought it a small price to pay, but as Krait pointed out, a perfectionist does not like ANY side effects.

The hair restoration had left him balanced but with the condition lurking. And as Ulric said, even that was an improvement, like having the effect of Wolfbane without having to take it.

Severus was nearly there.

And it was Peter who said,

"Sir, as it's from blood, might it work better injected directly into the bloodstream than ingested?"

Severus regarded him thoughtfully.

"Like Muggle vaccines?" he said.

"I don't know sir; I don't know much about muggles, except what you read in the 'Daily Prophet' so likely to be lies."

"Heh, that's Merlin's truth. Yes, my boy of COURSE it should be injected. Ulric, roll up your sleeve."

The effect was profound.

Ulric grew hair all over, yapped a few times and passed out. As he started coming to an hour later, the hair started falling out.

"How do you feel?" said Severus, who had been monitoring him with Scarpin's revellaspell.

"Like I've been walked over by an erumpent, if you want the truth, Professor Snape…. What happened?"

"Your body was forced into beginning to change and the antibodies in the injection fought the change, defeated it and threw it out of your body" said Severus calmly. "You, Mr Rolf, are no longer a werewolf. Congratulations."

Ulric Rolf grinned; then he started laughing in sheer joy.

He was still not healthy; and it quickly exhausted him.

Severus saw him to bed with a hot water bottle and left him drifting off to sleep still chortling.

Next it was Remus.

Remus Lupin rolled up his arm the moment Severus explained what he had been doing.

"You are trusting me a very great deal Moonie" said Severus.

"Why should I not trust you Scales?" said Remus quietly "You have always proved yourself trustworthy. And I certainly do not doubt your potion. You never declare a potion before you are ready."

"You are my second test victim you know; a test from the full blown condition not the partial condition I had got Mr Rolf to."

"Do it. We'll soon find out if it works; it's full moon in two days. I'll go out – with Padfoot as my keeper – and see what happens."

"You're a brave man Remus."

"I have you and Sirius and James to live up to."

"No living up required. This is going to hurt; and be temporarily unpleasant."

The side effects lasted for longer and were more profound; a partial change started as well as fur growth and Remus screamed as his body fought, almost as if he was under the homomorphus charm to force a werewolf into human shape, a profoundly agonising experience for the werewolf. Severus put his arms around the writhing werewolf, casting a rapidly reversed cruciatus curse to suck pain out into himself, hastily sharing some of it to the bloodgroup, but keeping the most to see how much this was likely to put werewolves off. Sirius came in at the run.

"Pass it onto me Scales" he said.

Severus shook his head, tight lipped.

"I need to know if it's going to be acceptable" he said "Besides, I can take it… ah, it's subsiding."

Moonie slumped, unconscious still clinging to Severus.

"Rough" said Sirius.

"Extremely" said Severus "Unless that was just a stray bark from you Padfoot….How can I ask him to let me do that to Teddy?"

"Why wasn't it as bad for wassisface, Rolf?"

"….Because he had it as if in the preteen form….as Teddy will…..help me explain that to Remus when he comes to, I'd forgive him for not believing me" said Severus.

"You great GOOP" said Remus through shut eyes "You are the only one who has doubts about yourself. You took the pain."

"Of course. I never expected it to be so bad."

"I suspect as well as being a full blown werewolf it's in proportion to the number of years you've had it. That's more than thirty five years. How can I tell you if it's unacceptable –ow, my snout's going back in – if I haven't felt it?"

"I can take it; I've stood up to Voldemort's cruciatus curse; but most people couldn't" said Severus.

"So whack the serum full of the draft of living death and let them ride it out unconscious" said Remus. "Me I'd take the cruciatus curse for that long – and I know what it feels like, I've fought Bella Black-Lestrange the first time around – to be free of the disease. Am I?"

Sirius whipped out his wand as Severus whipped out his and they cast together.

"Yes" they said in one voice.

"Then bung some into Teddy; and if it hurts him I'll cast your spell whatever it was."

Severus shrugged.

"I reversed the cruciatus curse, is all, to take pain rather than dealing it."

"Hasn't he got clever since he's been working with unwholesomely inventive brats like the new Marauders?" laughed Remus.

"It's the whole Marauder thing" grinned Sirius. "Let's go and get drunk; we owe it to ourselves!"

"We certainly owe it to Scales to treat him until he's under the table" said Remus softly.

They took Peter along too.

With Peter's problems with Mr Bobbin – who ran the main shop in Diagon Alley – and the fact that Ulric Rolf had been unable to acquire wolfbane potion there, Severus asked Draco to investigate Mr Bobbin.

"If nothing else it'll inconvenience him as revenge for my cousin" said Severus "And he HAS broken the law because Peter told me he was brewing Felix Felicis when he was still only sixteen, and you can't sell it if it's not been brewed by an adult, never mind that he's not qualified."

Peter had told Severus that Mr Bobbin disapproved of 'scum like werewolves' being given free medication; that there were those – most in fact – who did not ask to be werewolves did not seem to matter to him.

Draco discovered that Bobbin was prejudiced and greedy and hated giving away what he could make a profit on – especially as he was issued with free wolfbane potion through Severus and therefore would have higher profit margins – and Draco bound him over to obey the law on pain of prosecution and informed him that he was under observation.

Since having a pair of aurors in, publicly testing random samples of his stock, had cost Bobbin more custom than the profit he had gained on sharp practices he was prepared to do almost anything to prevent them swooping on him again.

As Draco said, sometimes threats did more than following the letter of the law and prosecuting him for stealing – effectively – from the government. It was a technique Lucius used with great effect and Draco copied his father gleefully.

Remus and family were invited to join the Bloodgroup.

"We always wanted you" said Sirius "But it was the whole furry little problem thing."

"I – don't know." Said Remus.

"You're the only Marauder that isn't; Harry represents Prongs and Whiskers doesn't count" said Sirius.

Remus blinked; then nodded.

"All right" he said "I don't know that Teddy…."

"All of ours were born in it" said Severus quietly "We didn't want to take that away from Teddy; any others you have will be if you are. And then you can protect him and Tonks better if she and he are joined; it's you as a pair you know. It has to be. Besides, then it'll be thirty nine, arithmantically such a nice number."

"I'll talk to Tonks" said Remus. "Yes, we can discuss it; I mean, we don't need it against Voldemort, but there's Odessa…."

"And you're known associates of those of us who publicly oppose it" said Severus.

The three Lupins duly turned up for a Blooding ceremony; and Hermione flung herself on Remus and hugged him when she learned that he was cured. Hermione had always had a soft spot for Remus.

And Remus found out how popular he was with the younger element when Jade led a comb and paper rendition of 'for he's a jolly good fellow'.

"What happens if somebody has a baby to make an arithmantically bad number?" asked Tonks.

"Well that's a good excuse for the rest of us to quickly get our husbands in the baby-making mode" said Krait, grinning wickedly at Severus.

Severus blushed.

"Augusta Malfoy Snape, you're pregnant again" said Hermione.

"Well what if I am?" said Krait "are you jealous because you and Ron haven't made a baby yet between you?"

"Certainly not" said Hermione "Ron agreed that it was better to have time together first and for me to pursue a career before settling down to motherhood."

"Oh" said Krait.

"What do you mean by that?" snapped Hermione.

"If you have to leap down my throat you don't have to ask" said Krait.

"Goodness, I do wish the adults wouldn't squabble like weevils" said Kinat.

Several people cuffed him lightly.

"He's right of course" said Krait "I recall making a similar comment about older adults when we set all this up. We aren't all the same; if we were there wouldn't be any point of this group revelling in our differences; Hermione, my sister, you don't HAVE to feel guilty about not getting pregnant right away; nor did Fleur, she's only expecting now and she and Bill have been married lots longer than you and Ron. Ginny felt differently; that's HER choice, don't let Molly upset you by asking every time she sees you if you're pregnant yet."

"How did you know she does?"

"I know Molly. I did wonder if you were jealous; I see what you're jealous of is the approval Molly showers on me for my fecundity."

"Ah yes, the Weasleys, such a FECUND family" put in Draco in a fair imitation of his father's more sneering voice. "Not that dad can talk now; I guess he WAS jealous of Arthur. Grace and I may never be able to have more than Edward; so we'll help you lot enjoy yours if we may. Besides, we get to give them back. Much more fun, isn't it Hermione, cuddling small Molly Potter knowing you can pass her back when she leaks?"

"Oy" said Grace. "Actually he's a very good father."

"I got to practice on Lilith; it's why she's a loony from when I dropped her on her head so much" Draco winked at Lilith who stuck out her small pink tongue and wiggled it at him. At least she had lost the habit of making it forked.

"Thanks people" said Hermione "I just don't feel ready for motherhood yet. Ron understands."

"I'm not sure I'm ready for fatherhood yet" said Ron.

"Nor am I and I'm a sight older than you" said Sirius.

"You'll find you're ready for fatherhood when our brats are old enough for you to get into trouble with them Padfoot" said Willow serenely.

Severus laughed.

"I think she has you there old man!" he said.

"You'd know of course – old man – having adopted a couple at the right age to practise with" said Sirius.

"Oh rather" said Severus "Jade and Lydia gave me knowledge of what it is to be a father. Loved every minute."

Jade snuggled at him.

"Daddy taught us what it is to have a real DADDY" she said. "Of course we enjoyed walking Snuffles too."

Sirius cuffed her lightly with two fingers.

Being undercover as a pet dog and listening to two little girls talk to their pet about having a daddy had been one of the things that had enabled him to reconcile with Severus; but there was no point letting Jade get away with THAT sort of comment! Jade grinned unrepentantly at him.

Sirius was a favourite uncle.

"Are you going to be a wolf animagus now, Uncle Remus?" asked Lydia.

Remus considered.

"You know, I think I shall; it was a tradition with our generation of Marauders – for my sake, but I'd turn my back on that if I did not become and animagus" he said. "It will be very nice to have the form of wolf but still be myself; I look forward to finding out what it's like."

"He shouldn't be Moonie any more" said Jade, critically "He isn't run by the moon. I vote we call him Akela."

And Akela stuck.

They arrived back in school to discover that Mei and her group had broken out in mischief again –as Krait put it, as though it were an infectious disease – and had carefully and lovingly played a joke on the sixth.

Each house had a prefects' common room; but there was also an all-house senior common room, ostensibly for the use of the sixth form, but where fifth form prefects were also tolerated and where the non-prefect members of the sixth were turfed out for all-school prefect meetings. Mei and co had decorated it carefully with sprayed 'webs' and rubber spiders of various sizes on elastic to bob up and down alarmingly.

It was not intended to scare anyone just to make them boggle a bit; which indeed it did, though Thierry Nguyen Le Fevre refused to go in until it was spider clear. Dione distinguished herself here in pulling webs aside and throwing rubber spiders at giggling juniors.

Mei presented the biggest – a one foot monster wearing a 'kiss me quick' hat – to David as a token of her gang's appreciation of his fairness.

David solemnly accepted Desmond – as he christened the brute – and set them six repetitions of 'Incey wincey spider' for forgetting that a lot of people have spider phobias, and just because none of the sixth HAD a phobia – Thierry having merely an aversion – was no excuse to do something that for some people might be like putting a boggart in the room.

Mei was much struck and apologised and David relented and reduced their lines to five repetitions.

They thought it fair enough and presented David with their lines all beautifully decorated with spiders and webs drawn in the margins.

Naturally it was Mei's spider who was knitting in a rather competent little cartoon.

David planned on keeping those lines for posterity to remind himself in future years of what fun and frustration being head boy could be!

Really he couldn't be out of school for two minutes without somebody getting up to something!


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Baddock and Pritchard felt the whole spider jape more keenly than any other senior perhaps because they felt most keenly that they were not prefects.

They blamed the lower school and particularly Jade Snape; an unfairness since Jade had been out of school proper at the time taking part in the Bloodgroup ceremony bringing in the Lupins. Accordingly the two sixth form boys began a campaign of bullying against the lower school, targeting Jade's friends in particular and her little sister Lydia since Jade was rather too great a quantity in herself. They soon found themselves at a loss, however, for when twisting Lydia's arm, Jade, Seagh and several prefects of the Marauder variety turned up; and the Marauders laughed and said that Jade and Seagh might have Baddock and Pritchard and joy to them.

Jade was more then equal to dealing with bullies – Lydia was quite capable of dealing with any one for herself as she pointed out – and Baddock and Pritchard were soon jinxed into twisted and unconscious oblivion that the marauders sneaked back and mostly undid later to avoid the younger ones getting into trouble for the bullies being found in such a state.

Baddock and Pritchard spent the next few days never knowing when their farts might glow or their ears suddenly be switched for elf-ear fungus.

Accordingly Baddock came up with a plan, and they made sure to collect a stray hair or two from Professor Snape; and set up a careful brewing.

When Jade was given a summon to the potions dungeon she skipped along happily; only to be confronted with a stern looking Professor Snape who told her that she let his family down by her behaviour to seniors and would have to be whipped and then apologise to the two seniors involved.

For a moment Jade's head spun in terror – she already knew about whippings from her early life in the orphanage – and then common sense asserted itself. Her DADDY knew about that, he would NEVER do such a thing – and besides, her blood told her that this was NOT her daddy!

Jade sent out a blood scream as the false Snape said,

"Pritchard, hold her for me" and the boy went to grab her.

The shock to the pair when the real Professor Snape and others – Professors Black, Lupin and Malfoy among them – started arriving, with the Head Boy, and the Marauders – new and junior – and other prefects together with two house elves and a selection of small children who launched themselves onto the culprits, followed by two uniformed Aurors and a number of other grown ups that they quickly recognised as Harry Potter and his set. Severus took one look at the heavy whip in Baddock's hand and Jade in Pritchard's grip and launched himself on the boy.

Krait slithered into snake form and wrapped her coils about Pritchard, squeezing; and all the time hissing sibilantly that he could not know as the rest of the bloodgroup knew were vituperations and threats of the most vicious.

Into this walked Albus Dumbledore; who had enough of Severus' blood in him through the curing of the curse on the Peverell Ring that he could feel when there was activity that stirred Severus at least. And Severus was not blocking the fury and desire to kill Baddock with his bare hands.

"Sirius?" said Albus.

"They seem to have been intending to flog Jade whilst pretending that it was her own father doing it" said Sirius coldly "And in light of her history an even crueller thing; but still utterly revolting to betray a child's trust in her parent even without what has previously happened to the poor little mite."

The poor little mite, furious, was busy casting jinxes at the helpless and rather blueish Pritchard and the now scared Baddock, whom Severus had by the throat forcing him backwards over the desk..

"Severus. Krait. Enough" said Dumbledore.

The habit of obedience was strong; and Krait loosed her coils and slid back into her own slender form; Severus jerked convulsively and let go of the boy, leaving him to fall and set fire to his robe in his own cauldron's fire.

The Marauders jumped on him hastily – and heavily – to put it out. A few kicks managed to land as they stamped out the blaze.

"Pritchard – I presume Baddock" said Dumbledore coldly. "I cannot begin to tell you how revolted I am by such a performance. I cannot think of a worse thing anyone might do to a child – not the act of bullying by flogging so much in itself though that is bad enough; but to pretend it is done by her own father. You will be leaving Hogwarts in disgrace, both of you."

"But… our NEWTs!" said Pritchard who was a better colour now.

"You should have thought of that before you embarked on a career that might match any deatheater's save in its petty and inefficient pursuit" said Dumbledore coldly. "I should like to say I was ashamed of you but you take yourselves beyond that. You will leave immediately; Draco, Harry, will you see they get home? I shall send your things on to you."

"We shall sir" said Harry.

"And what's more we'll be WATCHING you" said Draco "Any transgressions you make against the law and we'll know about it. Join any attempts at goblin-coursing and we'll be climbing all over you. Even make an attempt to lay a finger on muggles and you'll be up for muggle trafficking. We know your sort, and you started sufficiently guiltily at me mentioning goblin coursing that makes me certain you know about it, the both of you; so now I'm watching your fathers too. Oh boy, just give us any excuse to have you er, 'obliteerieated and killed nastily' and I'll do it!" he did not bother with the Convolvumort voice; he was too angry. And with so many scars blazing in fury the two boys knew it.

It came home to them that these people, this group – and Jade and Lydia Snape bore the scar too – were probably the most dangerous people in the wizarding world, if not individually then certainly collectively.

And even a scrub of a Wart could summon the others at will.

"And why didn't Lydia call in more to deal with you before? Because she knew she didn't need to!" said Jade gazing into Baddock's eyes and giving him the uncomfortable feeling that she was reading his very thoughts.

But a child so young could not be a legilimens!

Could she?

Draco grabbed Pritchard and Harry grabbed Baddock.

It has to be said that they were NOT gentle in the way they manhandled them out of the castle.

Both, whilst acknowledging that Jade could be a pest, were very fond of her.

And whilst the odd cuff kept her in her place there were things so despicable that they should not be permitted.

"_**ssss**Suppose after all they had tried to do that to an ordinary child!**ssss**_" said Harry indignantly "**ssss**_one who could not identify the imposture by bloodsong! Evil, evil bastards!**ssss**"_

"_**ssss**They will definitely bear watching**ssss**_" agreed Draco.

Baddock and Pritchard knew enough to recognise Parseltongue as spoken by humans – it is doubtful that Pritchard, squeezed and panicking gave much thought to the sounds issuing from Krait – and to know that wizards who used it were to be feared. Harry was a known Parselmouth; they had not known the Malfoy family also counted it a skill!

Pritchard wet himself.

"Dirty little beast" said Draco in contempt "And you've never had to go through a tenth of what Jade has taken in her short life! Cowardly, dirty, filthy little beasts, both of you….you sullied Slytherin house by your presence! The names Baddock and Pritchard will be spat upon by my family and all my kindred from henceforth to the end of time. You sully humanity by borrowing human form. You creep slimily in the primordial stench of existence hoping to aspire to reach nematode on the evolutionary scale, fetid and foul in your putrescent peregrinations. Your speech is a turgid and er, cacaceous effluent that befouls the air and causes offence to the ears. Your existence offends lugworms. And in addition to such loathsome personal features, you also smell. The sum total of world wide civilisation will be improved by your deaths, and the overall intelligence level will rise too. Harry, old boy, anything you wanted to add to that?"

"Oh I think you summed it up very neatly old boy" said Harry "Save that creeps like this waste your pearls of um, sesquipedalian vituperation."

"Let us deliver these turgid lumps of turpitude to their parents then" said Draco.

Back in Hogwarts, Severus had gathered Jade up into his arms and was hugging her fiercely, crying tears of anger, relief and fear for his little girl.

"I knew it wasn't you daddy" Jade was assuring him "Oh, but have they done this to other kids? Pretended to be you or somebody else to punish them so cruelly so the poor kids don't think they have any redress?"

"I will address the school, Jade" said Dumbledore "And explain what has happened; and ask any child who feels they have been treated harshly by any teacher to come to me and we shall explore that possibility. I do not rule out that awful possibility. You permit I tell the story?"

"Oh yes, Professor Dumbledore; I don't mind" said Jade "You can tell the school that I recognised that it wasn't my daddy because the body language was wrong if you like; which is true enough only it was a specific part of the body being the blood. Dell and co will get it."

Dumbledore nodded.

He was not perhaps happy to have confirmation that another Bloodgroup had been started; but had every expectation that if the first group knew about it that they were monitoring it.

Dumbledore was never prouder of Jade, however, than at that moment, when her first thought after reassuring Severus had been for other children

It transpired that this was the first time Baddock and Pritchard had pulled this stunt; for nobody came forward, and all listened to the tale of the seniors' iniquities with absolute horror.

"And suppose they'd done it to Seagh before we blooded him" said Abraxus to Hawke "Or to a mixed up kid like Dione who wouldn't know what to believe! I think when we've left school we should seek out those two and deal with them permanently."

Hawke raised an eyebrow and drew an interrogative finger across his throat. It was not like Abraxus to be bloodthirsty.

"Damn right" Abraxus confirmed "They are a risk to the general public, those two; the more working in concert. Pritchard's not half so bad on his own, if you ask me, they're a wizarding Leopold and Loeb!"

Hawke was much struck by that hypothesis.

"I wouldn't say you were wrong at that either twin" he concurred.

oOoOo

It was a member of the Marauders who was next to cause some excitement.

It was that time of year again for Apparating lessons, again under the auspices of Percy Weasley.

It was Kinat who caused the consternation by utterly disappearing during the practise; and briefly vanished from the sense of him in the blood of the others before he rocketed back into his hoop, rather the worse for wear and sobbing hysterically.

Abraxus asked permission to take their friend somewhere quiet and find out what had happened.

Kinat sobbed out his story, though starting back about face by saying

"His name is Rogat… he's not a nameless dead goblin, his name is Rogat."

"All right old man" said Romulus soothingly. "Who are we talking about?"

"The goblin in the bolt hole… the one we buried" said Kinat.

They exchanged looks.

"Kinat, have you been time travelling?" demanded Hawke.

Kinat sobbed.

"I wasn't concentrating" he said "It was my own fault, we apparate so easily normally… I was thinking about why he might have been there…. Anyway, I fetched up in the room, and he shouted at me for approaching so quietly down the passage; and – and we exchanged names. As you do. And he told me he had to go and talk to Mr Crabbe who would be letting us into the school and helping us when the main body got there. And I wanted to shout no, don't trust him: but of course I couldn't. So – so I waited until he went out; no spiders then of course. And then…. After a horridly long time he staggered back in with a sword in him and collapsed by the bed. He said to me 'tell them we are betrayed….but I killed him too' and then….and then he died." His body was wracked with sobs. "And not only could I not tell them, I knew that they had already been cut to pieces. It was horrible…horrible!"

"And then you came back" said Abraxus "You left a few minutes to make sure you didn't occupy the same time twice?"

Kinat managed to nod.

"I remembered that Abraxus was in the act of turning round to say something snide to Derwent" he said "So I pictured coming back when he was fully round and probably staring at where I wasn't. It seems to have worked."

The Marauders had been checking him over thoroughly with wand and roughly gentle fingers.

"You don't seem to have splinched yourself anyhow" said Romulus in relief. "Lumme, Kinat, only you could manage to apparate four hundred odd years and back without splinching yourself; and Porteous can't do it from inside a hoop to outside without losing his left leg."

"And he didn't lose his marbles 'cos they went years ago" said Hawke "Sure you came back with your wits intact old boy?"

"More intact than yours – old boy – though that ain't saying a lot" retorted Kinat, somewhat to Hawke's relief that he was a bit more himself.

"We'll put up a memorial to Rogat" said Abraxus "Saying that his last act was to kill the betrayer and to try to warn the rest of his forces. And we'll research this Crabbe character too."

Kinat nodded. His colour was a little better now.

"How did he manage to travel through time?" said Romulus.

"Space and time are just part of the four-dimensional space-time continuum" said Kinat "There's not real difference between travelling in time than in space save that it requires more energy, like, say walking uphill; how do you think time-turners work? It's no more than a second rotation only about the z-axis in terms of i….. shutting up now."

"You probably have to be able to believe in it to manage to do it" said Hawke kindly "We'll all firmly disbelieve."

They were interrupted by Percy Weasley, concerned for a pupil who was moreover a fellow Gryffindor and usually a star pupil. Kinat hesitated briefly; then decided to tell him the truth, leaving out specifics of where the passages were.

Percy was both horrified and fascinated; and was enough of an arithmancer to actually be interested in Kinat's theories of the space-time continuum.

As they seemed to be getting on so well together the other marauders left them to it and went to get tea; they deserved it. And the arithmancers would presumably notice they were hungry at some point or Dumbledore would send someone to find his ministry guest.

It was unkind; but Abraxus pointed out that arithmancy at that level also constituted cruel and unusual punishment and they were too young to die of cruelty and boredom.

Later the New Marauders invited both Junior Marauders and Possible Marauders – as they dubbed Mei, Leo, Mad, Chad and Lydia – to a ceremony of remembrance, and because he had shown respect invited Percy Weasley too.

"He might be a bit of a pompous git at times" said Rom to the others "But he DID find what things in life are important in time to fight beside us against Voldemort; and he's been awfully decent to our Kinat over his inadvertent time travelling"

Actually, the marauders privately thought that Percy showed less preconceived ideas about goblins than his brother Ron did, despite Ron being of the Bloodgroup; for Ron was rather inclined to assume that a goblin was going to be sneaky and selfish until it was proven otherwise. Having Kinat as his blood brother had helped but he needed reminding of that at times, Kinat often thought.

Kinat told his story again for the benefit of the younger ones, outlining for them too what had been going on in general history in case, as he said severely, such things had passed them by.

"Betrayal all round would rather tend to explain that massacre" said Percy "I often wondered why the goblins should have been taken so by surprise but we had old Binnsey – uh, Professor Binns – and he didn't encourage questions."

"Hannibal's cool" said Lynx "That's Professor Lector, Cousin Percy. We call him Hannibal because of Hannibal Lector in the muggle film. It's not a film they let us watch but we've heard a bit about it to explain why Hannibal; who isn't in the least bit like Hannibal the Cannibal but you gotta have nicknames for the staff, of course."

Percy was not the first person to wonder how Lynx got through long and complex sentences without breathing.

"Uh… I suppose it is a school tradition" he said. "I say HOW did Draco Malfoy manage to survive dubbing Professor Snape as 'Spurious Snake?"

"Oh Stirrer thought it was funny" said Abraxus. "That's his official lower school nickname; us Marauders of course call him Scales which is his Marauder name. He's a lot lighter than he was in your time I think; he doesn't have to lie to Voldemort any more. Mei, my good poppet, let us celebrate Rogat's life with a sing-song and you can lead your reprobates in the potion-monster song."

Mei, nothing loath rose and bowed, bowed towards the grave now adorned with a stone detailing Rogat's name and details of his death, and led her group in a rendition of the song the boys had written.

Percy sat and wept with laughter.

"It seems wrong at a memorial but….." he said.

"Rogat would have enjoyed it too, I'm sure, if he'd had my opportunities" said Kinat "I – I think it's almost a way of inviting him into a joined and fairer society. When I have children one of them's going to be called Rogat. And HE'll go to Hogwarts as a student not as an invader."

"One day history will be taught truly, not from a skewed point of view" said Abraxus "Mr Weasley, are you in a position to influence what's taught as history; or at least to be another voice opposing unfair and untrue things being taught? We all know that goblins did bad things too; no side is whiter than white in any conflict, but if the reasons for rebelling were taught, and the times when goblins were almost pushed into fighting I think it would help. Our Kinat deliberately failed his History OWL just to write facts not accepted fictions, and we'd like to think he didn't sacrifice a qualification in vain."

Percy nodded.

"I'll see what I can do" he said "Dad will help; and the more people who mention it the better chance there is that the examining body will have to review its practises."

They finished the ceremony with cocoa and crumpets and marshmallows which Percy drank and ate a little gingerly but willingly.

He had never actually had so convivial a time with schoolchildren even when he was at school; and regretted perhaps the time he had wasted in hiding his bitter envy under a priggish exterior. Kinat and his little sister here were no better off, by their clothes, than the Weasleys yet they seemed utterly accepted even by these sardonic Malfoy twins – and one of them a Gryffindor – and the goblin children seemed to have as good a time as any; and Kinat spoke of his family with love and pride.

Percy was perhaps as happy as he had ever been.

oOoOo

Mad Lockhart had a brief period of not being happy.

Just when he thought he had lived down the notoriety of having a famous father and had acquired his own notoriety as a paradigm of lower school trouble his mother turned up.

Her reasons appeared to be to check whether Filius Flitwick was lavishing the sort of loving care on her 'precious one' that so tender and delicate a flower – in her opinion – merited.

Fortunately Mei and Jade had heard of her arrival – through their own extensive networks – and had the forethought to hustle the tender and delicate flower away from his noisy and muddy game of hurley that Seagh was teaching and into a rapid bath. Mad protested rather that they had dragged him into a girls' bathroom and was told not to fuss because by the time they had finished with him nobody could tell if he was a girl or boy just the way his precious mommy liked him.

Jade inserted the soap in his mouth to smother the comments that answered that.

Dressed in clean clothes and a nicely pressed gown – courtesy of Sirri – and with his golden locks hastily regrown and curled to the length they had been on his arrival before a _diffindo_ spell had taken care of THAT embarrassment – he looked every inch a precious article and was able to emerge shining and sweet from the Ravenclaw common room with a 'nice' book in his hand and positively bursting with an air of bijouterie as Jade put it.

He endured being kissed and walked nicely with his fond mama and discussed poetry with her.

Mad knew a lot of poetry.

He had learned most of it copying it as lines in a selection of detentions, the other prefects rapidly picking up on David's idea of setting repetitions of appropriate poems as more instructive – and easier on the prefect's imagination – than having a sentence set to copy out. And Mad was of academic turn of mind, or he would not have been in Ravenclaw; and liking some of the poetry he had been set to copy had looked up other works by the same poet.

Neillia Emerson was delighted at her little boy.

"I'm so glad you seem to have some nice quiet friends like those girls you were talking to!" she gushed "Not like those awful articles over there!" she indicated the rest of the hurley enthusiasts who ranged between dishevelled in the extreme – Seagh – and the ones who might have been any race beneath the mud up to and including trolls, like Chad Fenwick. As the 'nice quiet girls' – who had remembered to call him Amadeo, not Mad – were Mei and Jade, Mad hid a smile. How little his mother knew!

Mad asked his mother what she knew about Blood magic and found her rather vague and of the opinion that it involved dark wizards and boiling virgins alive and not a NICE subject for little boys to ask about.

"What about the blood magic people did to protect Harry Potter?" asked Mad.

"Oh no, you've misunderstood, darling, Professor Dumbledore would never permit anything like THAT" said Neillia.

Which discussion made up Mad's mind for him that if invited to join the blood group to confirm as a Marauder of some description he was going to do it.

His mother thought it faintly nasty; and as she applied that description to hurley too, blood magic had to be a good thing.

Anyway, the coolest professors were involved in it too.

The cooler Professors – Krait and Severus anyway, though Sirius and Remus backed them – were thinking deeply about the more disadvantaged children in wizarding society.

They invited the New Marauders. Willow, Myrtle, Sephara and Dione to tea, adding Dell and those of his group that were fourth years with him and Ed Dinalt.

"I don't know yet how far any of you lot had started thinking about a career" said Severus "But if no thoughts had yet occurred I'd like you to consider the thought of teaching; if only for a little while, whilst you find yourselves."

"Who's leaving then?" asked Hawke.

"From Hogwarts? Nobody so far as I know. But I'd like to apprise you of some shocking statistics that have been gathered for me by Mr Dell's father concerning education in the general populace. Perhaps you are unaware that less than one third of the wizarding community attends Hogwarts; and less than one third of one per cent of goblins. My cousin Peter is not unusual. Now there are some community schools wherein a few subjects are taught largely by the efforts of volunteers from within the community, witches with small children who have also a crèche arrangement to enable them to teach even if only part time. Some of these community schools are examination centres, others – the majority – are required to travel to London for public exams. Few children at such schools achieve more than half a dozen OWLs and I do not think any offer NEWTs. Some offer only three OWLs in total. It is true that in many of these cases the children are from anything but wealthy backgrounds and do not have the talent to merit a scholarship to Hogwarts: but even so it is not ideal. This accounts for another twelve or so per cent of the human population – I do not think any such schools offer places to goblins – which if any of you can achieve a level of arithmancy should tell you that more than half of the human wizards in Britain do not attend school at all. Many of them live in London where there are no facilities at all; and where the poorest live. We can scarcely count the perhaps one per cent of children who go to foreign schools including Hallows' Boys Academy and Miss Cackle's school for young ladies for those people who like to separate the sexes and leave their children socially inept. You are aware that we are converting a house in Obscura Alley into a day school; and we shall need teachers, and teachers who have experienced a good and happy schooling."

"And you'd like us to volunteer for a year or more sir?" said Abraxus "I don't think any of us had any pressing ambitions, we kind of put most of our efforts and ambitions into fighting Fishface and Odessa. Passing on knowledge to kids – and not just academic knowledge – seems reasonable at least for a stopgap."

"Yes; I was lucky my school fees for the first year were already in trust for me with Albus and my uncle couldn't lose it" said Hawke "Or I'd have been in the same situation as Peter. The Davenports scarcely manage, if they had any more kids they'd be in deep shit. And even so they ARE the lucky ones. And their parents scraping to get them NEWTs too so they have better job prospects. Y'know I might put it to Francis that he could do worse than teaching in a day school. It's a paid job after all. I reckon those of us who are lucky owe it to the community to give back the education we've been lucky enough to receive. Forty five per cent or less studying to any kind of qualification is a shocking figure; I don't know how that compares to Muggles but I'd guess not favourably."

"Muggles have a lower grade exam for their dimmer students that gives them at least something to achieve" said Krait. "And there might be something in the concept of producing a general certificate of education that shows that those who pass it have at least studied something formally; maybe showing study to a fourth year exam level over five subjects, each subject shown by grade as one would grade a fourth year end of term exam so that an employer, for example, might pay for private tuition or give private tuition and pay to have an employee entered as an external student in one or more OWLs – Mr Bobbin, say, had he been a decent type could have seen that Peter had covered enough to take an OWL in Potions and boast all his staff were qualified. And that's the only way to make employers pay for such, to let them take kudos for it."

The Marauders nodded.

"So they'd take this lower grade exam at the same time most people take OWLs then?" said Willow.

"That's what I was thinking; and maybe the odd OWL alongside for those people who could achieve one or maybe two OWLs but the general certificate thing would show they had studied more widely than just the odd OWL" said Krait.

"So something like an ASS, an All Subjects Studied?" said Hawke

"Well not quite so unkind an acronym I don't think" said Krait "Whatever you may think about someone unable to gain any OWLs."

"You have to be a bit dim; even I got my eight OWLs and four of them at 'E' even if the rest were only 'A'" said Dione "Admittedly that was down largely to the Marauders and Severus pushing me severely but even so!"

"You're not dim though, my child" said Severus "You're very bright and to have overcome all you did and achieve those grades shows dedication as well as brains. And it's not all brains either; Fish Brunt isn't stupid, he just has trouble getting anything out of a wand."

"But even before I was blooded and was still a squib you had me in for six or seven OWLs" said Sephara – confirming, incidentally, a conjecture Lionel's group had made – "On those subjects that didn't need much ability with a wand."

"True" said Krait "And if we can offer Arithmancy, Astronomy, History, comparative magic, care of magical beasts, ancient runes and muggle studies – and potions for those with even a little magic may prove adequate, as you did my dear – then we may yet see an increase in the number of children with OWLs. Oh and Divination; you can make up any old rubbish and pass Divination, at least I did. I rabbited on for half a page about perturbations in Uranus and came away with an 'A', never did a class in my life. Ron failed as I recall and he'd studied assiduously and handed in every homework assignment Hermione and I did for him."

"Divination's a bit tighter since Rosemary's been running it" said Sirius.

"Well Powerless Polly was a dweeb" said Krait dismissively "Mei Chang could have taught better than that even counting the probable giggling."

"Back on subject" said Abraxus "What about a Diploma of Ordinary Endeavour? That has a pleasant acronym and moreover kind of honours Lily Evans-Potter who I reckon from what I've heard would be up there in wanting to see more education. What's the national average for OWLs per person of those who take them, Dell?"

"Five" said Lionel "At grade 'A'.

There was a long silence.

"What's the average just at Hogwarts?" asked Romulus.

"Seven, of which six 'A's and one 'E'" replied Severus.

"Crumbs" said Abraxus "That kind of throws us and our whinges about only getting five 'O' grades out of our ten into perspective, doesn't it?"

"Even at Hogwarts not all students take more than the five compulsory exams" said Severus. "And one in five witches and wizards do not complete sixth form even after completing OWLs. This is made up partly of those who have not made the grades to study the NEWTs they were hoping for – though we WILL negotiate if they come close – or who find the work too hard and drop out. I do not count creeps like Baddock and Pritchard who are, generally speaking the exception rather the rule; we've had a few more expulsions than usual over the last few years largely to make a point about deatheater type behaviour. We did NOT have the expulsion the ministry was after – Harry – because we managed to head that off at the pass, as you might say. And there have been relaxations on the harsh treatment of underage wand use, with investigation first rather than summary wand breaking."

"That's why we never use our wands when we egregiously break the law" said Hawke "Once we figured out that the age tag was attached to wands we worked harder on wandless magic so we showed up as spontaneous seven-year-olds that no one gives a hoot about and left our wands at home. Dobby got Harry into trouble because Harry had his wand with him in the house. No wand, no age tag. Simple."

"I really do NOT want to know you pestiferous brats!" said Severus "And in front of such innocents as Mr Dell and his sweet little band!"

Lionel and his far from sweet little band were grinning broadly.

"Can you break down NEWTS for us?" said Willow "I for one am interested."

"Of those who do complete OWLs, as I said twenty percent drop out; sixty percent take three NEWTs" said Severus "- Note, this is take, not necessarily PASS. A further twenty percent take four to six; it does vary a bit from year to year. Some years seem more academic than others, your whole year, Lower Sixth, are quite academic, as are the fourth. The fifth is…less so."

Ed grinned; that was his year.

"However" went on Severus "within the twenty per cent who do more, generally speaking about three quarters of them are taking four NEWTs – fifteen percent of the total students. Most of the rest – almost five percent or one in twenty take five; and less than one percent take six. Or indeed more." He smiled fondly at Krait who had seven.

"Well if we can raise general levels of education we can maybe also pick up late developers or those who would benefit from more intensive education in the few subjects they excel at" said Hawke. "The WOMBAT test for aspiring wizards what does it stand for now, Wizards Ordinary Magic and Basic Aptitude Test don't cover potions nor aptitude with beasts or a feel for plants. It's how many stars can you get out of that wand, boy, more or less and that's your lot. We could maybe synchronise timetables and send on those who are one-trick-ponies to single classes. Hell, if a kid is a squib and is great at arithmancy they ought to have the chance to get an OWL as curse-breaker's assistant. And I suspect some kids don't do well on the WOMBAT because of the written component; Obscura Alley is full of untutored speech and I suspect low literacy skills too. And THAT we can improve."

Severus nodded.

"Well, thanks for all listening and thinking about it; and we'll be paying you older ones to see to poking around 66b and planning changes as a school in the holidays then."

"Excellent" said Hawke, rubbing his hands together.

_a/n who picked up the reference to 'The Worst Witch'? Thanks Jill Murphy, I don't own the Worst Witch any more than I do Hogwarts but I will be playing with Cackle's and Hellibore's academies more in the future. Because they ought to belong in the same universe and Jill Murphy came first. _


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

The Marauders surveyed 66b with a proprietary air. It was theirs. In a year and a term they would be teaching here. They had argued out what they were going to teach and had contacted Neville to see if he was prepared to come in as well. When he found out Sephara was interested Neville agreed instantly and was engaged – rather cheekily – by the Marauders as DADA Professor.

Neville was relieved; it was a position he preferred to that of teaching Potions.

Rom had put his name down for Potions and no-one disputed that. Abraxus was to take Transfigurations and Hawke Charms, despite it being Hawke who was considering strongly being an animagus. Myrtle was to teach Herbology and Sephara care of magical beasts, with Kinat on Arithmancy. Willow said she would do part time on enchanting if they could not get anyone else, but preferred to work in Ollivanders as it was what she was drawn to, perhaps kitting out the kids here with their wands.

As no-one else was likely to care about the wands of poor kids, the others greeted that with enthusiasm.

Francis Davenport agreed a little warily to teach enchantment and items; he was attracted to the idea of a good solid job but was afraid of failure. The pleasure the others showed at his acceptance prompted him to suggest Elisa Mourne as a teacher of ancient runes at which she was fairly good. Dione lacked confidence to teach at all as yet and Severus asked the Marauders not to push her.

It was all theirs.

They had already shaken Hogwarts from their feet, mentally, for the time being and forgotten firmly that they were prefects with a duty of care to Dympna Burke, out in the Alley without a keeper and a gang of ragamuffin kids viewing her smug and bandbox appearance with the sort of unholy glee that generally presaged a beating up. Dympna would never want to talk to marauders anyway; so they firmly turned their backs.

And if Kinat winked at the urchins he was prepared to swear it was no such thing and just something in his eye.

They were also being paid to oversee the demolition of the two semi-derelict houses next door and next to that, one of which having been the premises of the brothers Grubbe, now in Azkaban and their assets forfeit for various crimes; and they decided to look over this work first.

The goblin contractor looked relieved.

"Ah, Mr Malfoy, Mr Malfoy, honoured sirs, one of my men thinks he just heard a cry. The buildings were supposed to be clear, but…"

"Quite right to stop work and check" said Abraxus "Show us where…."

The cry was more of a whimper where demolition work had already started.

"I'll go through under that rubble" said Kinat "I'm the skinniest…you guys get your wands out and stand by to hold it up if it tries to make me skinnier. Boy am I glad you're over seventeen"

Kinat wriggled in, his own wand – illegally as he would not turn seventeen for several weeks – ahead of him as a light. Magic in a place stiff with mages would not cause a problem anyway; but public wand use might get reported. And holding up masonry would need every focus there was available.

Soon he was able to peer through a small hole too small to get through, too small even for the tiny scrap of humanity trapped behind it.

"Hello" said Kinat "I'm Kinat. Who are you?"

"I – I fink my name beginned wiv a 'V' when I had one" the child said.

It was about seven, filthy, and of indeterminate gender.

"Do you have a mummy or daddy?"

The child shook its head.

"Mine mummy died ages ago….V'ronica, vass what she called me. I never had a daddy."

"Well, I'm going to get you out of there" said Kinat, running through in his own mind whether to try to transfigure her and hope she would come towards him, to transfigure himself and go in to collect her, transfiguring her – it'd need to be a snake for sure in those options – or to memorise her surroundings and get everyone to help open a temporary gate.

That seemed the safest option.

Actually leaving her was not a good option.

"Marauders, can one of you do a mindmeld on me, we need to open a gate for Veronica here" he said. "I think that's easiest."

"Gotcha" said Hawke. In other words they would synchronise blood and open a gate their end while he opened it this.

They could open gates in their sleep now, after so much practice.

And Kinat saw the sky appear behind the huddled child and Hawke reach in and draw her out.

He wriggled backwards as fast as he dared; and was glad to be out herself.

"Cor, that was a nice piece of work" complimented the Goblin foreman.

"We do work rather well together" said Abraxus.

Hawke kicked his ankle

"Smug bastard" he said.

66b took a back seat while the marauders fed and cleaned Veronica and cast Scarpin's Revellaspell to reveal blood-ties to her to find out if she had any family.

"Nearest I can figure is JJ" said Abraxus, referring to Jasper Crouch-Jones.

"Dad'll know" said Romulus "We'll take her home, at least for now; then she can go to Hogwarts in the orphanage, she'll be knocking around with our lot there anyway, she might as well meet them."

"I don't want to be in a norphandage" said Veronica "Vey make you be a hooker. Ma died of vat."

"Not the Hogwarts orphanage" said Hawke "And if that's what you know of orphanages, some orphanages are about to get investigated. Anyway, my cousin'll take care of you first.

Severus was much more skilled at revealing lineage by spell and whistled loudly.

He then spoke Winky's name loudly as a summons.

Winky had pledged to belong to marauders; Severus was a marauder. She arrived, actually rather pleased to be wanted in the holidays.

"Winky, did you procure a woman for young master Barty about eight years ago?" demanded Severus.

"Winky may have done" said Winky cautiously.

"Winky is not in trouble; I just want to know" said Severus, forcing himself to be patient. The difference between this pathetic creature and his dear little mistress Sirri was as great as – well, between Mundungus Fletcher and Dumbledore.

"Winky did. She was a witch called Ambrosine. She was a whore, it was not a nice girl being seduced" said Winky "But she was a pure blood, Winky made sure of that for Master Barty."

"Like anyone cares about that" said Kinat softly.

"Presumably Crouch cared" said Romulus dryly.

"Well" said Severus "You are Veronica Crouch; and in your name I shall see about getting your inheritance."

"I shan't go in an orphandage" said Veronica.

"Poor little brat I can't blame her" said Krait.

"My mum'd take her" said Kinat "If there's enough to pay for her keep."

Severus eyed him thoughtfully.

"All right, Kinat; I'll talk to her and your dad" he said "There's going to be plenty to pay for her keep. Probate is still raging over the Crouch estate. I have a clear heiress here of unsullied line. The Crouch-Villeneuves are going to be grinding their teeth."

"That won't upset Lynx" said Hawke "They're her cousins and she can't abide them. That's why she got her mum to contest their claim."

"Excellent" laughed Severus "I like the Black-Weasleys; they'll drop the claim for this mite then in a shot and support her. They'd probably take her in too."

Kinat thought about that.

"I guess she'd be better reared by a wizarding family than goblins" he said. "Lynx is all right and so's Leo; they'll do her well as siblings. And the kid's as game as can be, not overawed at all; she'll be a Marauder one day too."

They returned to the alley to find that the urchins they had seen stalking Dympna were now parading her clothes on a pole as a trophy. Of Dympna there was no sign.

"You didn't kill her did you?" asked Hawke "I WOULD have to take issue with that."

"Nah, Mister, we jus' stripped her an' rolled her in the mud a little" said the leading urchin.

"Oh, nothing my kid cousin wouldn't do to her at school then" said Hawke cheerfully.

"Cor! You mean posh kids don't like her neither?"

"Some of us manage to be rich without being posh, my friend; being posh is a state of mind, not a state of finances. She's a loathsome little bloodsnob is Dympna Burke."

"She killed Cressida Blunt, we think" said another.

"No she didn't, we kidnapped Cressy a little bit because she should have gone to Hogwarts if her pa hadn't absconded" said Hawke. "She's in a class with two other of my cousins and his kid sister" indicating Kinat with a jerk of the thumb.

"Wot, she gotta be wiv a filfy gobbo?"

Hawke casually hoiked him into the air by the ankle with a twitch of one finger.

"Didn't I say I don't like bloodsnobs?" he said "THAT comment makes you just like Dympna Burke. Goblins are people too and you'd better learn that sonny or when you come to MY school that we're outfitting here you'll find yourself in detention regularly."

"Oo say I wanna go ter your ruddy school?"

"Well if you want to grow up ignorant and without qualifications so you don't get so well paid a job because you're lazy and feckless, I guess that's your business" shrugged Hawke "I wouldn't want any such lazy brat in my classes, nor bloodsnobs either. So either wise up or goodnight and screw you."

He let the child down and turned away.

"YOUR school?" said Kinat "Who died and made you Dumbledore?"

Hawke grinned.

"I guess Neville will be headmaster" he said "It kinda flowed though. As I was the one doing the talking, because you lot always leave the hard work to me."

"Well I like that!" said Romulus "When you decide to interfere can the rest of us get a word in edgeways? Not hardly!"

"Oh these Malfoys" murmured Abraxus.

66b was on four levels. The basement level had been cleared of the rubble released in it, which appeared to be just a deadfall and not the ground floor. No goblin contractor would go into it as it was said to be an unlucky place, not at least until it had been cleared as safe by wizards.

The marauders soon found out that the goblins were smart in their paranoia.

They entered the ground floor first and went into the parlour or reception room to the right that opened into what seemed to be a dining room behind it.

"We can knock these into one and just have an archway into the entrance hall as a Great Hall" said Abraxus.

"Lumme, look at this over the top ormulo clock!" said Hawke, picking it up off the mantlepiece.

The face shifted and changed.

"Time of your life, one hundred and ninety two years, three months, four days seven hours" Hawke read out.

"Let me see?" said Kinat "I like clocks."

"Goblin through and through!" laughed Hawke handing it over; then peered over Kinat's shoulder as his face drained to a greyish tinge of shock.

"Time of your life, seventeen minutes and forty two seconds….it's counting down" said Hawke.

"Severus" said Abraxus "Put that thing – no, Rom, you bring it."

They apparated to the house in Orme Court and babbled out the story in shock. Kinat was starting to look ill now from more than the shock.

"Quickest thing here is to try a bezoar" said Severus, snapping his fingers in the summoning spell.

Two minutes later and Kinat looked distinctly better.

Severus was using Scarpin's Revellaspell on the clock.

"Nothing here" he said "Stay here boys; I'll be back."

It was a long quarter hour before Severus returned looking grim.

"The source of the poison is vegetable, given off by spores in the carpet" he said "A poison specific to goblins, and so far as I can tell every carpet is infected. I have a sample; and I am going to brew you a potion that will kill the spores and render the poison inert, and then you will have to take the carpets out and burn them. Kinat, when they have done that you may return to the house with them and you are to take this clock with you into every room and check it periodically in case there is anything else."

Kinat nodded.

"I like this clock" he said "It saved my life. And now it tells me I'm going to live for a nice long time."

"I suspect it was there just to taunt any goblins who got in" said Severus dryly "Knowing that no goblin can resist picking up a nicely balanced piece of machinery; any more than I can resist testing scales or tapping the side of a cauldron."

With the carpets sprayed – using muggle mechanically pumped garden sprayers – and burned the group felt a lot happier, and shared what had happened with the goblin foreman doing the demolition works.

He spat in the road.

"Told 'em we weren't going in til it was cleared by wizards. That Mr Kinat, he's either brave or daft."

"Happen he's both" said Abraxus cheerfully "He's a Gryffindor, like me; being brave AND daft is what we're renowned for."

The foreman laughed.

"Well if you say it's safe, Mr Malfoy, I can have my men in whenever you need it."

"Give us a little more time; I don't want to put your men at risk, Gartak" said Abraxus, glad he could remember the man's name "We have taken as many precautions as we can over Kinat but one is easier to protect than a work gang. It's just going to take as long as it takes to make it safe."

"Well I appreciate that concern, Mr Malfoy, I really do" said Gartak. "We've got on apace as you can see with the demolition work; we're saving the best stone of course."

"Excellent; I'll ask Madam Prince to see that you have remuneration for your thrift" said Abraxus.

Gartak looked surprised; but pleased.

They got back to looking around. On the other side to the stairs from the parlour and dining room was a library.

"This can be left as a library; and some of the books for student reference" said Romulus.

"Once we've cleared out such gems as 'the preparation of human parts for magical items' said Hawke, picking out that book. "Yuk, I believe it's actually covered in human skin!"

Hastily he put that back!

Romulus had picked up an ornate candlestick.

"Hey, there's a dial at the bottom" he said "They say….harmless…soporific….poison. That's a bit more sophisticated than poison candles from Knockturn alley, you got the poison or sleeping potion reserves in the actual candlesticks and they….hold on…." He was unscrewing parts of the candle "They have hollow needles that poke up into the wick to carry the appropriate stuff."

"Well we could clean out the reserves totally and put perfume of something in instead" said Abraxus.

"Waste not, want not" said Hawke. "Or fill them with wit-sharpening and wideawake potions for last minute revision."

"Whatever" said Kinat "I'll have those, Rom Snape; mechanical things are my business, and I'll see about cleaning them. In the back yard."

Rom grinned. Kinat was keen to show he was of use after having had to be rescued from the consequences of the evil house; and Rom was not about to deny his friend.

Hawke had the next mishap, still in the library. He slumped into a chair with a book about Blood Ritual and yelled in shock when restraints snapped out and held him.

Abraxus was over there in an instant.

The others were hardly any slower.

"There's a small plate on the back" said Kinat "It has a switch like on an alarm clock; it is set at 'on'. If I move it 'off' perhaps it'll work."

"Worth a try" said Hawke who had stopped panicking almost immediately "If not I can apparate out I guess; it's an anti apparating zone, just the chair, I can feel it; but not with the house elf thing."

Kinat flicked the switch and the restraints withdrew. Hawke got up; then experimentally sat down again to a yell from Abraxus.

Nothing happened.

"It has to be set" said Hawke calmly "Let's check the others; we don't want to be caught a second time."

"YOU wouldn't have been caught the first if you hadn't been a lazy scrote, butting out to read" said Abraxus affectionately.

Hawke grinned.

"Mea culpa" he said.

The library needed to have at least half its books removed and examined by experts in dark magic like Severus and Lucius; and then it needed a good cleaning. The dust of ages lay thick on it and there were doxies nesting in the curtains.

"Can see old Mordecai Filch wasn't so cleanly as his cousin Argus" said Abraxus, sneezing, and absently whacking a doxy with a book to squash her before she bit him. "And him not a squib and – presumably – capable of using _scourgify_ occasionally."

"Maybe filth and squalor suited his idea of being a dark wizard" said Romulus whimsically "Sort of grubby physically as well as morally."

"I almost dread going through the back to the kitchen" said Kinat.

The kitchen was indescribably foul. It also had a large pantry off it.

"Know what?" said Hawke "Reckon we could knock that into the great hall too, just leave an area twice the size of the pantry as a kitchen, and get fresh food in daily, we don't NEED vast storerooms the way Hogwarts does. Then there's oodles of room for them to eat in, in the Hall; and we can set up partitions and have classrooms for the first three years at least to be in for wet playtime rather than run wild in the library. Or keep it open and organise indoor games. Keep our options open. Downstairs to the basement next?"

The stairs down to the basement opened into a large L-shaped area equipped as a workroom.

"Ready made for Davenport to teach enchanting and item crafting then" said Kinat approvingly. "What's the room that intrudes to make it an 'L'….oh" he recoiled as he opened the door.

"What?" said Hawke sharply.

"Torture chamber" said Kinat laconically.

"Cells opposite under the kitchen" reported Abraxus "Lovely place. Right, there's water laid on for the workshop and basic sanitary stuff in the cells, we can divert that for a boys loo and a girls loo. The torture chamber can be DADA; and we'll knock all the cells into one for a potions dungeon, that needs plenty of water too."

"When we've cleared stuff out and cleaned it up I vote we hold a riotous party down here to drive out some of the bad background count" said Kinat.

"Good idea" said Abraxus.

They went up to the first floor and discovered the sordid pit in which Mordecai Filch was wont to sleep, in the Master Bedroom over the parlour and dining room.

"Squalid little git" said Hawke "He might at least have had a grandly evil lifestyle like Uncle Lucius."

"Like you said; squalid little git" said Abraxus. "Charms for you in here and Transfiguration in the second main bedroom for me?"

"Sounds all right" said Hawke. "There's two small bedrooms between the bathroom at the back; it's a big bathroom. Maybe it was hinting at Filth – er, Filch."

"Good big girls' and boys' loos with shower stalls for after games or if any need bathing" said Romulus "And keep that big bath – lumme, it's as grand as the prefect's bathrooms at Hogwarts, almost a swimming pool and marble, I declare – and they can take turns, girls then boys, to use it in especial need. Attics?"

The attic was divided into two down the middle; good big rooms utterly suitable for large classrooms since the bits nearest the pitched roof would be unusable save for cupboarding.

"Arithmancy one side and Magical animal care theory the other" said Kinat "And maybe we can add an observatory at some point and move Care of Magical Beasts downstairs if we can get any flying horses or hippogriffs to actually care for, because, you know, a certificate of knowledge of care of transport beasts is going to get our kids a better job than an OWL in care of magical Beasts. Lucius, say, doesn't care if a kid can clean out a firecrab, he wants to know if he can harness his matched Granion Horses to a carriage, knows what to feed them on, can check their hooves for chizpurfles and so-on."

"You have a point there" said Abraxus.

"Nah, it's rude to point; he has a blunt" said Hawke.

Kinat poked him.

"What, by the way, about Herbology?" said Romulus.

"We're having a greenhouse outside" said Abraxus "But I like the idea of also having a stable outside: we could build a purpose-built classroom with a tackroom over it, and then perhaps get some older animals that need retiring off, to demonstrate the four different kinds of winged horse and, if we can get one, a hippogriff. They're NEWT level critters, Hippogriff, but enough really rich wizards own them that having a certificate in their care on top of any other qualification would mean a lot."

"It's the only class really where the rather high-falutin' theory we learn is at odds with applications in the real world" said Kinat "If one can connect Hagrid with 'high-falutin''; but the stuff we have to learn out of Newt Scamander is going to be of relatively little use to poor kids. DADA can come in handy to anyone; especially routing boggarts. Potions too; you have to learn the basics on potions you may never use, like swelling solution, that have as their main purpose the combinations of the first simple techniques before you can learn useful things like brewing Pepperup potion for colds."

"I was planning on aiming my syllabus towards useful potions" said Romulus "As well as pushing those kids capable of more towards exam potions. But throughout the syllabus at Hogwarts, the exam potions are technique potions really, if you think about it. I thought of having, as it were, two streams in each class; those learning potioneering for their own use, and the exam stream. The others we can get through the DOE with luck, and I can always write a personal recommendation to an apothecary that so-and-so has shown a competent level of aptitude in brewing such-and-such and so-and so; and THAT could get people jobs too. Simple, in-house certificates of competency in individual subjects to an employable level if not an exam level saying exactly what they can do. In Herbology, one might not pass at even fourth year level but still be trustworthy left to prepare manure in correct mixtures and pot on seedlings. Enchantment too, someone might be trustworthy to test the enchantments on items even if klutzy about putting charms on."

Abraxus nodded.

"Then we'll do that; we'll maybe have a form letter but effectively each one will be individually written and boxes ticked showing competency in certain things; and we can put comments on the bottom too, like 'has a good stirring technique but needs watching with longer potions as he can dream a little' or 'is great with animals but is a little careless about regular hoof checks' or whatever, good and bad. And warnings before the certificates are written to address any negative comments that might need to be made."

"Excellent" said Hawke "Let's go and buy pastries from the baker now because I'm hungry; and call in Diccy and Winky to help here this afternoon."

"Winky ought to belong to Veronica" said Kinat "As she wants to belong."

"Winky, being free whether she likes it or not, should be given the choice" said Romulus "Now she's mostly dried out I think she might belong to Veronica; nobody should give a kid a drunken bum like she has been. She might even like to do both; that'll really make her feel useful, looking after Mr Barty's daughter AND the Marauders."

Winky liked the idea of being at the back and call of her Mr Barty's daughter as well as doing things for the Marauders; the Marauders were hard workers and rarely needed a house elf.

Diccy asked if he could be official head elf at this new school when it started; and the marauders agreed.

Diccy could also be trusted to go looking for other free elves who could be trained into the ways of the marauders to work under him.

Once the house was clean and Gartak and his men had been given instructions in the alterations and building works required, the marauders had one more job for the holidays; a marauding job.

oOoOo

Cosmo Malfoy was, the New Marauders all agreed, the epitome of a Marauder; and should be their patron. Accordingly they had searched Malfoy Manor for any visual representation and found a miniature on ivory in his mother's grave.

Cosmo in the miniature had only a little voice, but had been enthusiastic at the idea of full blood goblins now at Hogwarts and the idea of a secret society to protect the school and individual freedoms and racial equality though he blinked a little at first over house elf rights. He was pleased that his bones had been found; and even more pleased – if a little surprised – that the current head of the family had had him re-interred in full honour in the family crypt.

"And Avery choked to death on a fish bone? Excellent!" he said when they told the story of how they had found him "My curse worked then!"

"Sure did" grinned Kinat "And Uncle Lucius – he lets us friends of his nephews adopt him – is cool, busy boasting that the Malfoys have always been progressive."

"How like a Malfoy to make a virtue of it!" chuckled Cosmo wryly.

The Marauders had asked Charlotte to paint a full portrait, using the miniature, and the bones they had found, and the remains of the clothes he had been wearing; and planned to hang it in their secret room.

Cosmo was thrilled to be a full portrait and able to find out all about his kindred, and to take part in the deliberations of a group that held goblins and part goblins in honour and fought for their rights. He was eager to hear all about their adventures!

"I loved my time at school" he said softly "Nobody during my schooldays even questioned my race; and bastard Malfoys are not exactly unknown. I want to help others enjoy their schooling too and get the most out of it that may be."

The other dead Marauder was James Potter; and they had sought Harry's permission to have Charlotte paint him too from photographs.

Harry had agreed; on the condition that his mother was included in the portrait as an honorary marauder.

"And ask Charlotte to do two" he said "Then Ginny and I can have one, and they can move from one to the other to see their grandchildren, and to consult me too on your behalf and the behalf of future marauders that need comment or advice but not me personally."

The marauders thought this a most excellent idea!

Accordingly the portraits were ready, hung, and introduced ready for a grand Marauder party at the beginning of term to meet all the younger generations of Marauders.

Prongs was mightily impressed over the number of passages both new and Junior marauders had discovered between them; and much moved to learn that he could no longer call Remus 'Moonie'. Lily promised to explain the significance of 'Akela' to James. James was overjoyed, whatever his new name; and conceded that Severus had always been very clever. Lily looked pleased.

James did not want to meet Peter Pettigrew; but was glad that the new marauders were looking after him.

"I didn't treat him as well as I might have done" he said. "But I cannot totally forgive the betrayal of Lily and Harry; if he had set ME up, that I could have forgiven freely."

The marauders nodded.

They could understand that. Besides, they did not really want to bring Peter Pettigrew inside their Fidelius Charm even if they apparated him in and out.

"Fidelius charm, that's excellent" said James "But apparate? In Hogwarts?"

"Didn't Severus use the resurrection stone to talk to you?" said Abraxus "About the Bloodgroup?"

"He and I didn't talk about that; but I had it from Harry when he was a little bit dead, as he put it. I like that" grinned James. "Why does that work?"

"Because we're also blooded with free house elves as dedicated to Harry's cause as the rest of us" explained Abraxus.

"Who's your secret keeper?"

"Kinat here; because if anyone even thought we had a secret to keep they'd go after an arrogant bastard like us Malfoys" said Hawke. "And the stupider wizards – which so often equates with darker, because they're limited in scope of generosity of spirit – discount goblins."

James himself had trouble swallowing that for a moment.

"A GOBLIN? At Hogwarts, and a marauder?"

"Yeah, why not?" said Kinat "We all worked to kill Voldemort and we killed him for the rights of all beings, not just the ones wizards find prettier like muggles. It's all it's over, Prongs mate: appearances."

James digested this.

The goblin boy bore the scar; had taken the same risks as the others.

Then the portrait nodded.

"You're right" he said. "No different than werewolves. Sorry."

"Accepted" said Kinat.

"We still got plenty to fight" said Hawke "The spiritual descendants of Grindelwald."

"I guess" said James "There will always be marauders while there is evil and inequality to fight."

"Yes" said Abraxus "And that will be always because there are always going to be selfish, small minded people born."

James grinned.

"I kind of find that comforting" he said "In a world so uncertain that there are Malfoys in Gryffindor who actually care too."


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

It was David's last term at Hogwarts.

It was a bittersweet feeling to stand outside platform nine-and-three-quarters and know that this was the last time he would do that.

"Hoping for a quiet ride to celebrate your last time, Fraser?" asked Lionel Dell.

"Could hardly be a lot more exciting than last term" said David laconically "I don't think I want to go through that again."

"I arranged to have the Tuthills go and pick Mary Anne up" said Lionel "So at least THAT won't spoil your last time."

"Thanks; I appreciate that" said David "You'll do a grand job when it's you on your own, Lionel."

"Thanks David; I have a great deal to live up to but I'll try not to let you down. In anything."

David gave a rueful laugh.

"Let's talk about something else; I'll start weeping in a minute and we can't have that."

"Hmm, how about the concept of what Mei Chang and co might get up to, to celebrate your last term?"

David shuddered.

"Don't even GO there!" he said.

Mary-Anne was duly delivered by the Tuthills and all of them hung about chatting to Lionel and seeing to hustling younger ones aboard. The small Hufflepuff boy who arrived with an obvious outbreak of chizpurfles was hastened into a male toilet and firmly de-infested by the Marauders, when grabbed and asked for legal wand aid by Ross; and emerged looking ruffled but otherwise on his dignity, only to be stopped by a muggle policeman and asked if he had any complaint to make about these older ones.

Fortunately the child was fairly on the ball.

"No sir, the opposite" he said "They've been de-infesting me from itching powder. Kinda embarrassing but a sight more comfortable now."

"Kid has siblings" said Hawke. "YOU know how it goes!"

The policeman smiled.

"Young limbs!" he said. "Well, sorry to have troubled you."

"Sir" said Hawke "I would rather be troubled a hundred times than that a kid gets molested. That's what you thought, wasn't it? And in a way he has been, most egregiously, but only for cleansing purposes."

"Well young sir, I wish everyone had your attitude" said the policeman gloomily, smiling kindly at the Hufflepuff child who had met up with a friend and was busy heaving out sweeties and chocolate frog cards to swap. "Nothing wrong with that one."

"Not that firmly squashing when he's up to mischief won't cure" said Hawke "NOT in my school house, however so none of my responsibility, not in school, anyway; out of school any prefect mucks in where they have to."

Talking to muggles, especially those in authority, was important. Having Hogwarts have a reputation for being a 'nice' school with polite, law-abiding pupils would do them no harm.

David mounted the train to be greeted by the whole school – such as travelled this way – singing 'For he's a jolly good fellow'.

Mary-Anne Green and Cleonie Puckeridge came forward.

"You've rescued us both and you always make sure people catch the train, and so we had a whip-round to buy you chocolate, because that'll do more to help you through your NEWTs than flowers" said Mary-Anne.

"And it hasn't been adulterated with love potion like that girl tried to do to Harry and caught Cousin Ron instead!" piped small Theo Weasley, who was promptly cuffed by Colin, Alice AND Roger.

They presented him with the biggest box of chocolate cauldrons it was possible to get.

"Well!" said David "I don't really know what to say!"

Mary-Anne giggled.

"Well, you can say it with a mouthful of chocolate because we don't stand on ettiquette here!" she said.

"Yes, and you can share them with Ellie as she's your girl but don't you dare go sharing them around too far" said Lionel "we got them for you and not for your generous nature." David laughed.

"But would I be me if I didn't enjoy sharing?" he said.

It was a lovely gesture and so unexpected!

It was interrupted by the train screeching to a halt.

"Oh no, not again!" groaned David. He thrust the box of chocolates to Ellie and hustled up the front.

There was a muggle, busy saying to the nonplussed goblin driver,

"Please….just a stop down the line, to get my boy to hospital!"

There was a boy of about six in his arms, his face blue.

"What's happened?" David asked authoritatively.

"He was stung in the throat by a bee!"

David held out his arms for the unconscious child.

"I'll operate; no time to get him to hospital" he said, pulling out the bee sting. There was no time to brew an antidote and he had no bezoar on him, even if he could get it down the child's swollen throat. The immediate response would be Anapneo spell – which would clear the airway of a foreign body – but the child's own throat and histamine response was what was causing the problem and David did not know the specialist medical spells to deal with that. David DID knew in theory how to perform a tracheotomy; it was one of the emergency measures the MSHG had studied, largely to deal with extreme cases of ton-tongue toffee or langlock while an antidote was sought or the spell cancelled. He used his scout knife, muttering _'scourgify'_ to disinfect it.

The child's colour returned as air reached his lungs. Now David had time to make a choice; hold the trachea open with a biro and take him and the father to a muggle station, confunding them over how it was done; or call on the bloodgroup to try to draw out the poison. That would work better if he used his own blood on the boy; but sensitive though his father must be to even see the train and flag it down, it was well NOT to involve the child in effectively becoming a bloodgroup member. David usually had a biro in his pocket; it was easier than a quill, and inserting its empty barrel into the trachea was easy enough with magic to guide it.

"We'll drive to the next station" he said firmly, winking at the driver and firmly apparating with the man to the picture the muggle had in his mind of where he was expecting to go. A quick confundment made sure the muggle believed that the train driver had gone as fast as was safe to get to the station quickly; and left him with the impression that he, David, was the school doctor.

Once at the station the man would find someone to take him to the hospital and the child should then be fine.

David returned to the train.

"Busy year, Mr Fraser" said the driver gloomily.

"Maybe I'm a jinx on the trip" said David.

"Dunno what we'd do without you sorting it out, Mr Fraser; we'll miss you" said the driver. "Ah well, worse things happen at sea, they say" and he turned his lugubrious face back to the task of driving the train.

David had just settled down when there was the most fearful squealing from a junior compartment.

He was there at a run.

Lydia Snape and friends – most of the first year Gryffindors and assorted Slytherin Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaws of the more felonious type – were watching in horror as a rat, one assumed Theo Weasley's familiar since he was the only child David knew to have a rat, squealed and writhed, grew, and…..changed form into a naked human girl about the same age as the other first years.

"Crumbs!" said Theo.

"Here" said Lydia, pulling down her school robe "Put this on…. I say what ARE you doing masquerading as Theo's rat?"

The girl squeaked a few times, experimentally made a few other noises and said, rather squeakily

"I AM Theo's rat."

"Crumbs!" said Theo again.

"This smells of dark magic" said David grimly.

"But she's always been my rat" said Theo "I picked her out from the litter that cousin Charlie had, 'cos he had a female rat and they mated her with Percy's Scabbers."

"Oh my giddy aunt" said David "THAT's a fine kettle of fish; Scabbers was none other than Peter Pettigrew."

"The Marauder who turned bad and followed Fishface?" said Theo in lively horror.

"Oh he turned back at the end" said David "The child has nothing really to be ashamed of in her father. My goodness! What er, what had you named her?"

"Pinky for her dear little nose" said Theo. "I guess THAT's not appropriate."

The child had wriggled over to Theo's feet and leaned against him and he petted her ears absently.

"Peronel" said Lydia firmly "It's a female form of Peter and less of a mouthful then Petronella. We'll call her Nell for short, Nell Pettigrew. Don't worry David, we'll ferret around to get her enough kit until we can send someone to Diagon Alley for more, and we'll bring her up to speed on lessons. Don't worry Nell; we'll all help Theo to look after you."

"Thank you" said Peronel Pettigrew.

At least she had absorbed English and human mannerisms from being around the Weasleys.

"I shall ask Professor Dumbledore to write to your parents, Theo" said David kindly "With luck they may be prepared to give Nell a home. Peter is not really well enough to look after a daughter, though I think it is important for her to meet him. And we must find out if she has any siblings also changing form at this moment!" he added in horror.

"Oh no!" said Theo "Cousin Charlie said I was the lucky one 'cos all the others sickened and died just after I took her away. I – I s'pose for them the blood mix didn't work properly."

"Apparently" said David. "And we must keep an eye on Nell to see if she changes form on the full moon like a werewolf; or has to spend a certain amount of time in animal form like a Rakshasa…"

"What's a Rakshasa?" asked Chad

"A weretiger; it's an Asian kind of lycanthrope" said David.

"Oh" said Lydia "is THAT what Professor Khan is? I did wonder."

"So much for the poor man's privacy" said David. "Anyway, you lot, watch out for Nell's welfare. And keep me posted."

"Oh we will!" they all chorused earnestly.

The poor kid was lucky at that; to emerge from animal form with so decent a bunch of youngsters, relatively privately, and to be made the focus of help and love from one of the nicest group of children there were.

Whatever was Peter Pettigrew THINKING of, mating when in rat form!

Of course with many years in hiding, it was possible the instincts had dulled his reasoning power and he reacted to a scent stimulus, unthinkingly.

That at least would be the charitable way of looking at it.

David apparated directly to Dumbledore's office as the train drew in, apologising for the discourtesy as he arrived.

"That's all very well" said the portrait of Phineas Nigellus "But it's bad form in the extreme as well as being supposed to be impossible! You'd better have a very good reason, young Fraser!"

"I'm sure he does" said Dumbledore "His face is a study!"

David filled the head in rapidly.

"My goodness!" said Dumbledore "Now THAT's an unexpected development. Poor child! With little Theo Weasley you say? Well, well could be much worse. And no other survivors of the litter – even better I have to say, who knows where they might be now! You'd better go and talk to Peter, David, and apprise him that he has a daughter."

"I was going to" said David, grimly.

Peter Pettigrew was in his usual place by the fire in the kitchen when David tickled the pear to get in to check. He smiled at David in genuine pleasure, but the smile froze at the look on David's face and he cowered.

David forced his face to a more neutral look. The look of terror on this poor broken creature's face filled him with both pity and revulsion.

"Peter" said David, trying to sound cool but not hostile "When you were Scabbers and belonged to Percy – before he handed you on to Ron – you were placed with a female rat, belonging to Charlie Weasley."

"Filthy great bully she was too" said Peter sulkily. "I don't want to remember those days, it's not much fun being a rat all the time you know!"

"You have to remember those days" said David inexorably. "The fruit of your union with Charlie's rat resulted in a little girl; she's just assumed human form after growing up as a rat."

Peter screamed in horror; and it sounded much like a rat squealing in a trap. Then he buried his head in his hands and sobbed.

"She was a dirty great bully, I had to mate with her, she was biting me, I wanted to get out, be safe again!" he groaned. "They said I should stay in there until I mounted her, what CHOICE did I have?"

David nodded.

"I see" he said.

He could of course have gone through the motions; and yet – and yet it was probable that he had no choice from the point of view of instincts taking over. David himself knew that if he had been too long in dog form he had urges to roll in horrible smells; and because he was a reasoning being managed to avoid that. But at that time Peter must have been in rat form almost ten years without respite…. He had excuse.

David nodded.

"She was the only survivor of the litter" he said more softly "But you have a daughter, an eleven or twelve year old daughter. She is lucky to be with some really nice juniors who will look after her; the Weasley boy whose rat she was, Severus Snapes's little girl Lydia and sundry of their friends. Who I THINK are being vetted by the current Marauders as their successors. They'll see she fits in all right at Hogwarts; we'll just Hat her as if she was any new child."

Peter gazed at him dully.

"I have a daughter" he said. "Merlin's beard, believe me, David, I never thought there would be any kittens from that infamous union. I – can I see her?"

"I planned to introduce her" said David "A child should know her own father; I debated letting her think you were dead but that would be wrong."

"Thank you" said Peter. "May….could I see her Hatted?"

"The Elves will see you safely to the Hall and back" said David. "Doesn't matter though what house she lands in; it's the first time I can say that there are decent kids in the first year of all the houses. All the houses were represented where she transformed, as friends of Lydia; and I trust all of them you know."

"Thank you, David" said Peter "Lydia's a Slytherin I suppose?"

"Oh no! She's a Gryff" said David "Like her cousin Julia Malfoy. Things have been changing recently; and for the better. Lydia's a potential Marauder I believe."

Peter's face lit up into a rare smile.

"Then – then she will look after my little girl. What – what's her name? Some silly ratty name I suppose?"

"Theo initially called her Pinky but they've renamed her Peronel – after you. Nell for short."

"That – that's nice of them."

David nodded.

"Well, I'll leave Dobby to take care of you and bring you to see her Hatted" he said.

Nell was the only new child and therefore must make her solitary way to the stool and sit with the battered old hat on her head.

If it seemed strange to her it was probably no less so than had she grown up in the normal way and come as a solitary new child.

The hat pronounced

"Gryffindor!" with no hesitation and Lydia and Theo and their Gryffindor friends cheered wildly.

"Oh RATS!" said Chad disgustedly, having thought having her as a Ravenclaw would be cool.

"Erzackly" said Mad. "Anyway, she can still be our friend and get into trouble with us, even if we have to include Theo; he's all right."

"I wonder if she can play the combs?" said Chad.

David let Peronel settle in for several days before he had her in his office with Theo and Lydia as supports and told her the full story.

He put as good a slant as he could on Peter's actions, for the poor creature had almost been born to be a victim.

Severus had got over being a victim.

Maybe with a daughter to strive for, Peter might too. David told her,

"He never expected to have children; you are a spark of joy in his life and I hope you and your father learn to get on."

Peronel looked thoughtful.

"Will he play games with me and take me places like Theo's father does with him?"

"I hope so, Peronel" said David "But he finds going outside scary and you will have to make allowances for that. He is ill; and he is ill inside his own head because of all that has happened."

Peronel nodded.

"If he will talk to me sometimes it will be nice" she said "I – I don't know what it is to have family, except Theo. I've always belonged to Theo" and she cast an adoring look at the little boy.

David hid a smile.

Somehow it was not hard to guess where that would go in future years!

It was a slightly stilted meeting; Peter was busy apologising to Peronel, though it was hard to say whether that was for making her exist or for not being there or what.

Peter probably didn't know either.

Father and daughter cried a little and Nell promised to come and see him on the weekends, so she could be in school properly, like Lydia only saw her mummy and daddy at the weekends except in lessons when she was just another pupil.

"I suppose Snape's a hard father" said Peter.

"Well Lydia loves him" said Nell "She says he has to be hard in school but WE don't have his pearls of wisdom 'cos we're only weevils. Mind you there's Lydia's mum teaching Potions to us little ones and she has to be tough on Lydia but Lydia says human mummies are all about cuddles out of school" she added wistfully "And so are daddies. Do you want to cuddle me, daddy?"

Peter burst into tears and wrapped his arms around her.

David thought rather wryly that of the two she was more likely to be looking after him than the other way around.

Nell was a self contained child who seemed to accept her situation with a philosophy that bordered on insouciance; a true Gryffindor in many ways.

Peter should never have been a Gryffindor; it put too many strains and expectations on him.

Dumbledore had muttered from time to time about sorting too soon; but it had been shown that people COULD be re-sorted.

The trouble was when it did not occur to ask for it, or circumstances did not bring up the need. David was fairly certain that Albus had meant Severus when he made the comment; but the idea of his guardian as anything but a snide Slytherin with a healthy and Slytherin streak of cynicism seemed odd. True he was as brave as any Gryffindor; but there was nothing to preclude that in Slytherin house. Gryffindors were the noisily brave ones, the ones who got themselves noticed and made willing targets of themselves to allow people like Severus to undertake their quiet heroism more effectively, thought David. It was, it HAD to be a partnership. And either ethos could throw up leaders. And Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs were there – in the main – to back up the two leadership houses with academic excellence and solid dutiful perseverance. With the odd exceptions like the Mad-Chad-Mei group who had leadership potential to spare.

The Hat was no fool.

Those three might have fitted in better in Gryffindor or Slytherin House – either one in fact – but their families had Ravenclaw connections and Ravenclaw needed shaking up before it became as notorious as Slytherin had been for so many years.

David could only hope that Peter and his daughter managed to build a relationship together; and if not, well he would have to be on hand to help pick up the pieces.

The Marauders had taken Peter under their protection; and they would help if he could not forge a good father-daughter relationship.

And Nell had no real expectations save what she saw with Theo and his father; and had her own friends. It would hurt if it did not work out, but for her would probably not be tragic.

It might finish Peter completely; but that was a risk that must be taken.

He had a daughter; and a man had to take responsibility for that, even as David took responsibility for, and spent time with, the Romanian orphans he was sponsoring and particularly Vasilica whom he and Ellie might adopt once they were married.

Vasilica was fortunately on good terms with Mischa Seregin, Hagrid's adopted son; and they had both taken on a close friendship with Hadrian Malfoy, Julia's little brother whose father Vladimir was running studies on wizarding genetics and who was trying to map the goblin and house elf genomes to help in arguments about equality and, in the case of elves, to try to track down where the compulsion for self punishment was tied to see if there were alternative routes to removing its pernicious influence. It would be well if he studied a sample from Nell as well and compared it to DNA he already had from Remus and his son from before the time they were cured.

Vladimir was teaching in the Rowan House School but lived in at Hogwarts with his younger children who were cared for alongside the other orphans. His research fascinated him; and David had to admit it fascinated him too!

It was a victory for Peter that he managed to go for a walk with Nell at the weekend, all round the school premises – avoiding the forbidden forest of course which was out of bounds for Nell in any case.

The point about it being out of bounds had been driven home towards the end of the last term when Leonard Baddock had convinced the three Clough boys and the Moorcroft twins who had transferred from Rowan House that they would never have any credibility with the other kids – especially second years like the older Clough boy and the Moorcrofts – until they had spent a night in the Forbidden Forest.

They had been found by the proposed Marauders when Leo Black-Weasley had become concerned that the Clough twins were not in their dormitory and Baddock was smirking; and had jinxed the boy until he talked. He had collected the 'mad Ravenclaws' and Lydia and gone out looking. The missing children were in a coma under a tree to which they had been lured by the attractive and soporific spores of the death fungus that was busy growing grey mould over them to start digesting them alive. Lydia sent out a bloodscream for Severus who had duly seared the fungus away and then rushed the children – proto-marauders and all - to Madam Pomfrey, in whose indignation he, for once, joined. He then roused Hagrid and David to help deal with the infestation.

To the proto-marauders he had explained that they needed checking out too; since the fungus was insidious. Most victims never regained consciousness, save when the plant was ready to reproduce, when the pain of the growing fruiting bodies made them run hither and thither to carry the new plants further away; and finally they burst, bursting open the victim's body. It was, he told them, the only thing that had once caused a cessation in hostilities in a Giant-Wizard war since ALL beings turned aside to destroy infestations.

Baddock junior was in big trouble.

Though he could not have suspected the presence of the fungus – and Severus had his own suspicions as to its source – he knew the Forbidden Forest was out of bounds and dangerous; and Severus was wrathful on many levels not least the risking of some of the most talented potioneers he had seen outside his own family in the persons of the Moorcrofts and the older Clough. Young Baddock very nearly got expelled on the spot for attempting to emulate his older brother's awful record; but Severus relented enough to tell the boy that he was under strict observation, and since he considered the Forbidden Forest so fascinating he might go and work with Hagrid and see if he could find any more spores of death Fungus. As Severus was not merciful in explaining the details of its effects the boy was justly terrified; which had been the idea.

Maybe it would make him think twice another time.

Severus shuddered.

There were two younger Baddocks to come yet too, a boy and a girl.

And this boy would have influence over both in school and out unless he managed to get himself expelled first. Or transferred to Durmstrang. Viktor Krumm had written to David that the oldest Baddock boy was taking the German equivalent of NEWTs in Durmstrang.

And they were welcome to him.

It had, however, led to Severus questioning the younger brother quite roughly, and with legilimensy, if his brother had suggested this joke.

He had not; and that had dealt with one theory.

Severus had told the whole blood group that he believed the spores had been sent into the Forbidden Forest in the same way as the Huorns had been; in that all great wizarding forests had a kind of connection. They had suspected Odessa before, and Voldemort himself had almost confirmed that such an attack on Dumbledore had been a gesture of alliance. And nobody could really doubt that it was a likely source, although at least the Baddock connection to Durmstrang seemed to be coincidental. The spores were rare, and Hagrid scrupulous in patrolling the forest for all dangerous things.

It meant a need for a higher level of constant vigilance and an even higher level of security on the children.

David knew the Marauders had some kind of secret tunnel into the Forbidden Forest; but at least he could not doubt THEIR vigilance and caution.

The Marauders were on top of things.

They had had an idea, and as soon as Dumbledore reiterated that the Forbidden Forest was out of bounds they started its implementation.

Nobody knew the Forbidden Forest like Prongs, they reasoned; and they talked James Potter into having several single portraits of him done and affixed into trees at strategic points, into which he might wander from time to time, after the manner of paintings, and report back anything fishy.

Being an active marauder still tickled James' sense of what was right as well as appealing to his pride in his own abilities and knowledge.

On top of this he enjoyed meeting other marauders – including the newest, who were brought blindfold - for a party. David and Ellie were also invited, to meet Cosmo and because they were nearly marauders.

The secret room was very cramped and Willow demurely sat on Sirius' lap and Krait and Sirri sat on Severus with Tonks grinning, shrugging, and plonking herself down on Remus.

"If you can't beat 'em join 'em?" David invited Ellie who dimpled and sat down on his knee. Small people were piled – almost literally – on the upper bunk they had installed and almost as much butterbeer was spilled as was drunk.

It was a good party and the defences involving Prongs were met with much enthusiasm and relief by the rest.

"With Prongs on the job I shall sleep better" said Sirius, toasting his old friend's portrait.

"A clever idea" said Severus "Thank you James."

"And all of us who know the forest will go out anyway" said Remus "In animagus form; and our colleague Assim Khan who is a Rakshasa as I believe most of these horrid brats already know."

"He has a white and fluffy tummy" said Lynx, as though that explained a lot.

"She said we approve of him" translated Fabian solemnly. Sometimes Lynx needed almost as much translation as Professor Snape, though for other reasons.

Odessa might loom; but the marauders – all of them – were ready.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

David hoped Odessa would not make too much of a nuisance of themselves while he was so close to taking his NEWTs; but in the event it was another irritation that intruded more than German Racial Supremacists.

It was all about Appollonia Baldry.

David firmly called Appollonia 'Polly' as had been started back in the first year by his friend Lysistrata Attercop and promptly copied by most other Gryffindors as a means of depressing the rather theatrical flights Appollonia was inclined towards. She was a girl with enough Malfoy connections to put on airs without it affecting her standing with the Gryffindors of the days when Malfoys were loathed Slytherin; and was pale and ethereal looking.

It irked Appollonia no end that Krait Malfoy was paler and more ethereal looking then her and did not even seem to do anything special to show it up.

It also irked Appollonia that she did not have the entire upper sixth males at her feet. One might ignore Wido Mordaunt – the only male Slytherin who had lasted the course and only one of four Slytherin in total – because he was Wido Mordaunt and famous for disliking everyone except Fraser. But Appollonia had discovered the excitement of adulation when Hugo Munin and Stewart Ackerly from Ravenclaw actually had a duel over who was to ask her into Hogsmeade; and Hugo wrote a piece of music called 'to her eyes' and Stewart wrote a poem waxing lyrical – and occasionally grammatical – over her pale flowing tresses.

Lysistrata – Lyssi to her friends – said it would have made more sense – and proved more substantial feelings on the part of both – had they combined to make their music and poem into a song to serenade her. Appollonia tossed her pale flowing tresses over that comment.

She held court with the admiration of a third Ravenclaw, the musical Terence Goodchild, (and would have been scandalised had she known that half the reason for his suit was that she was rich enough to keep a fully paid up musical layabout husband, since Terence was more in love with Terence than with anyone else),Tom Wood and Ken Trelawney of Hufflepuff and admired from afar – though she was WELL aware of it – by shy Kevin Whitby of the same house; and had the admiration too of Hugh Hullit, a friend of David's in Gryffindor. In Gryffindor too she counted Jerome Marchbanks and Andrew Maddock as her admirers, and useful to have around, the first for his (albeit distant) relationship to the head of the Wizarding Examination Board, though Griselda Marchbanks would have been furious at even the suggestion that such would make a difference; and the latter for his relationship to a famous Quidditch player.

Appollonia had never, however, been admired by David Fraser who only had eyes for 'that stupid half-breed girl' as Appollonia thought of her – and had the wit never to say out loud – or Erich Snape, quite the best looking boy in the class. True, Thierry Le Fevre flirted with her – in an exciting and accomplished manner – but somehow she always had the feeling he was half laughing at her.

Dennis Creevey did not count either.

He was muggle born to start off with – she had forgotten that David was too, or preferred not to remember – and was stupid about photography. He was also shorter than her. David was a hero, of the war against Voldemort, of the Triwizard, and had played against an international team in quidditch and been part of the school duelling team. And Erich Snape too, he was almost as much a hero and so handsome too! And he gave time to that DWEEB Fenella Fenwick!

Appollonia conveniently forgot that she had lost an advantage with the more heroic members of the class when she turned down membership of the MSHG.

When Lissa Crabbe, a Slytherin girl – and incidentally an early member of the MSHG – had a goodie basket and invited sundry members of her own year for a last Midnight Feast fling, and both David and Erich accepted, Appollonia was furious.

Why, the Crabbes were all deatheaters! It was the outside of enough!

That Lissa firmly eschewed the actions of such of her family who followed Voldemort was for Appollonia beside the point.

Appollonia was beside herself with anger; she had tried giving David sweets, wriggling at him and asking for help with her work, all to no avail – save in the last request when he took her at her word and went through her homework with her as rigorously as if she was in detention with Professor Snape, as she moaned to the nearest thing she had to a female friend, Natalie McDonald.

Appollonia decided to rat up the midnight feast to pay them all back and went duly to Minerva McGonagall to explain how a Slytherin with deatheater connections was leading good Gryffindors astray.

McGonagall was not amused.

She had her suspicions about the feast already and preferred not to notice it officially, especially when news of it was brought in so underhanded a way.

Minerva was actually delighted in some respects that it had not been Fenella Fenwick who had sneaked; although she had every belief that the girl had been amongst those asked. The invitation was by no means universal though those who were not invited generally knew something was happening! Fenella had come on a long way and Minerva was genuinely glad for her.

Minerva accordingly mentioned to David in passing that the box room in which they had all intended to meet – in Slytherin House as all four were going – was to be redecorated.

"You're a sport Minerva" said David, kissing her on the cheek.

"Och, awa' wi' ye!" said Minerva.

They relocated – it being fine – to underneath the Dolmen and around it, far enough from the school to giggle like weevils without being heard yet not too far in case of sudden thunderstorms to drive them back in.

A good time was had by all; except Appollonia who led Minerva to rouse Professor Snape and drag him on a fruitless search for illicit happenings in his House boxrooms.

Professor Snape waxed irritable.

"My free time may not seem to you to be very valuable since you choose to waste it on your petty and malicious little schemes of tergiversation" he said "But I find I like my bed rest at my age. Since you choose to waste MY time at this unreasonable hour, you may report to me at my rising time, five thirty, and hold yourself in detention until breakfast time. I shall send an owl to waken you at five to give you time to rise and perform your necessary ablutions. Good NIGHT."

"And you may come to me after school for your detention with me" said Minerva, who disliked sneaks above anything.

Appollonia was NOT happy.

And David had not a clue that their plans had been sneaked on by a fellow upper sixth; nor even that Appollonia was sore at him.

Had he known he would have been amazed; and puzzled.

As indeed he was when Lyssi Attercop found out and warned him.

"But what have I done to her?" said David.

"It's what you haven't done" said Lyssi "You haven't snogged her."

"But why should I? I've got a girlfriend; and Ellie and I have been an item since she arrived."

"Oh but she's such a nonentity next to the beautiful Miss Baldry that you should have realised and left Ellie for her."

"Is she really that dim? To think I'd leave a fellow warrior who has besides fire, and wit, and personality for a charmless hysteric with a bad hair day who never so much as joined the MSHG?"

"Her hair is supposed to be artistically windswept" said Lyssi.

"Oh I thought she never bothered to brush it" said David. "But she's a nothing, why should she think I'd fancy her when, even if I didn't have Ellie I could ask any number of sensible girls out? And Lyssi, why are you laughing at me?"

"Boys aren't supposed to like sensible, they're supposed to like fluffy little morons like Polly" said Lyssi.

"Crumbs!" said David "And – look, I don't get why she should act like a jerk or a Ravenclaw – but I repeat myself – and sneak about the feast. Surely she'd know that the only attention she'd get from me over that is that I'd go from indifference towards her to despising her – as of course I can't help doing?"

"I think the idea was to rescue you from those designing Slytherin girls" said Lysistrata dryly.

David snorted.

"Not only is she despicable but she also has an erumpant loose in the top paddock" he said "AND the time I actually helped her out when she asked for it, she just flopped around sighing like she was bored with my company and the help I was trying to give her, looking like she was three parts drunk and one part on glumbumble juice."

"David, my dear boy! Those were her best languishing poses to fill you with more thoughts of sex than Gamps ruddy exceptions."

"Well I wondered if she was ill and that was why she couldn't study; I almost went to Madam Pomfrey over that" said David. "Why would she think looking like a vase of wilted flowers was sexy? Even if I fancied such a wishy-washy looking creature, which I don't. She should get out more, play more quidditch and counteract all that paleness with a nice healthy glow and bright eyes like Krait Malfoy."

"Poor, poor Polly" laughed Lyssi "You haven't a clue about her much vaunted ethereal beauty have you?"

"Ethereal fiddlesticks" said David. "May I remind you it was Abraxus who fell for a ghost; and she's a nice solid looking girl now, no ethereal rubbish about her. Or about my Ellie. Foolishness."

There were sounds of a flounce outside the door.

"Oops" said Lyssi "Seems somebody was eavesdropping."

"Well they say eavesdroppers rarely hear good of themselves" said David "Even from those of us who hadn't thought any ill of them until they behaved without honour. Go away Polly; I don't want to see any more of a loathsome creature like you than I have to."

There was the sound of an angry sob; and running feet.

"Well I shan't be someone's favourite person in the girls' dorm" said Lyssi "But I don't see how I can be held accountable for your lack of recognition of her campaign tactics and incomprehension when I try to explain them."

"You're a bad girl, Lyssi" said David affectionately.

David had to suffer his fair share of jokes and japes from the lower and middle school to demonstrate their affection for him; the first presented him with a jar of mucky water and a poem appended that seemed to David to have come from the joint pens of Mad and Chad and explained that this was all that remained of a sad and bereft Boggart that had failed to scare the Hero Fraser and had consequently sobbed itself into a puddle. Jade Snape and cohorts had written up, in their best handwriting, and illustrated, the 'ministry booklet' warning of the dark creature the 'tartan nose-howler' whose very cry struck terror into the bones.

Dell and co surpassed the rest of the school in their efforts to send up David; they had been working on a jinx and all cast it together to make sure at least one got through.

David opened his mouth to ask what on earth that was about and emitted the shrill whistle normally associated with a steam train. His yelp of surprise was equally translated.

Lionel and his co-conspirators fell about on the floor laughing.

"It isn't WRONG" they chorused "But we just DON'T do it!"

Apparently they had discovered some of the muggle children's books in the nursery; and David raised his hands in surrender.

He was released.

"It kind of went the route of Gordon the Big engine, the Gay Gordons, Bagpipe Music, Fraser" said Lionel.

"Not at all a complex train of thought then" said David.

Lionel grinned.

"Well anyway it made sense at the time" he said.

Of Lionel's group, Alice Trumball had firmly made up her mind on one thing.

She was going to marry Hagrid.

And though she still had several years at school to bring him round to the idea, it was as well to start laying her plans.

Accordingly she spent all the time with Hagrid that she could; and dragged him by the hand to report what the New Marauders were just getting more information on from Prongs.

The Dell-Tuthill bloodgroup was invited to a council of war in Myrtle's loo; and Prongs and Cosmo were brought along to join in the conference.

"There's an area near the centre where no new trees grow" reported Prongs "We noted it many times when we were out there in our youth. It has a …..strange feeling."

"Deep, like being in a well" said Remus.

"Yeah" said Sirius "You had a habit of heading for it in wolf form. Spooky."

"Anyway, I reckon that's where the connection is to other woods" said James "And I saw Huorns."

"Hagrid and me saw their scout on the move" said Alice. "It wasnae going fast, but muckle fast enough."

"They can shift" said David. "It's rather boring of them to repeat."

"And how old were you first time?" said James.

"Twelve; I was a second year" said David.

"And the chief warrior at Hogwarts was?"

"Dumbledore of course – oh. Right, I see, Harry Potter. And he's left."

"Score 'O' for observation" said James.

Lily poked him.

"No need for sarcasm, my dear, they've always worked as a team, why would they think that Odessa assumes they're weakened?"

"Because we need to think more of the psyche of the enemy, Lily" said Severus. "They like a personality cult. Jerome K Jerome had the right of it when he said that Germans follow the one who shouts the loudest. This implies that they have a replacement for Grindelwald rather than being a faceless headless team; and they assume Hogwarts itself has lost its hero. Personally, after the hammering our David gave their hero in the Triwizard I'd wait until HE'd left too."

"What if they think he has?" said Abraxus. "The rules were stretched but both foreign contenders were in their last year. AND DAVID WAS HEAD BOY! That usually only happens in the final year, it's only that he and Draco were exceptional that they lasted out two years. Also that the upper sixth in their lowers sixth years were a bit nonentityish, but that's neither here nor there. They think he's left perhaps?"

"Or if they don't that he's too busy with NEWTs to notice" said Willow. "Actually I think Abraxus is right; and that the timing covers when any half competent people who may have fought Voldemoret are tied up with OWLs and NEWTs."

"Same tactics then?" said David "None survives last time to report back, Draco and Harry, Krait and Sev knocked them all off on the retreat."

"What did you do?" asked James "You need to tell the smaller folk so it won't hurt to satisfy my curiosity too."

"Scales brewed up a whole load of weedkiller and the quidditch fiends delivered it to their roots with the Wronski feint" said David. "Then there were flamethowers – Krait transfigured water into petrol – petra oleum to the confirmed wizards here. Laarvely flames it made!" he grinned "And the little kids – us lot and the Marauders' year – dug ditches and filled them with brushwood and petrol. We fired our fire spells at THAT not the huorns. They being magic resistant you know"

"It was when I first started getting my twin" Abraxus murmured to Hawke "You left Derwent and Porteous to fight beside us."

Hawke grinned.

"Right, so now us big ones fly brooms at them and the junior and probable Marauders run the ditch defences the way we did" he said "Lionel, you and your older ones may fly with us if you wish."

"That'll be me and Callum and Tamsin" said Lionel "Tim can help brew weedkiller and Arjelan; Alice is good at potions too but she's a solid flyer, could she do an overwatch to take new canisters to people? Mary-Anne would be good at that, and Cynner ,Melody, Heather, Cholaka,Tuthills and Grigs with Hagrid on fire spells because they don't get overexcited."

David nodded approval; not just at Dell's disposition of his forces but at the way he praised their strengths in so doing.

"I ought to fly" said Jade "I'm one of your best; and I am main bloodgroup so I have backup."

"Is she as good as you, Scales?" asked James.

"She's better" said Severus. "Yes; I'm afraid I concur. With a heavy heart because you are only a Wart."

"A what?" said James.

"A Wart, a second year, one up on the scale from a first year weevil" said Severus "It was one of those traditions that sprang up spontaneously. I blame the New Marauders; it's generally justified to do so."

The new marauders grinned and James laughed heartily.

"I'll fly bludger duty with Sirius" said David "I'm no seeker or chaser!"

"Hey, we can dog their advance" said Sirius.

"DON't let's get sidetracked in awful puns" groaned Severus "Krait…."

"I'll fly seeker. I'm perfectly well with this pregnancy" said Krait "Look here, last time we involved the whole MSHG; and we needed them. They sent fifty. This time they may send more."

"FIFTY?" said James "As in five-zero? I'm getting back into my other pictures to check stuff out, I thought a dozen was bad enough, and probably all…" he disappeared out of the frame muttering to himself.

"Right" said Severus "One from each year go and put together the MSHG members and bring them down here….has anyone told Professor Dumbledore yet? Ah, I see. Mr Dell, your charm of manner is quite famed…."

"I'll go Scales" said David "Head boy's job."

"Cor, off the hook" said Lionel "I'd rather fight Huorns any day than explain to the head that we have two dog animagi barking up the wrong tree…."

Severus cuffed him lightly; and Lionel beamed.

Severus only normally did that to the people who were closest to him.

oOo

Dumbledore, Minerva, Filius Flitwick and sundry members of the MSHG drifted into the toilet, which was becoming cramped.

"May Ah ask, why in the toilet? And a girl's toilet at that?" asked Minerva.

"Tradition, Minerva" said Severus "It enabled us to let Myrtle join in while she was still indisposed."

Minerva blinked.

"That's no' a very usual description" she murmured.

James wandered back.

"Oh hello Albus, hello Minerva" he said "Are we letting you in on Marauder business then?"

"James! Lily!" said Minerva, rather overcome.

"Prongs, report" said Severus "Your extended social life can come later."

"Snide little bastard still, ain't you?" said James cheerfully "We got a bit of a problem; I counted three dozen huorns."

"Well that's not so bad" said Sirius.

"No; It's the four dozen werewolves with them" said James.

"That really is a furry little problem" said Sirius.

"No it isn't" said David. "The silver hollow points worked before on werewolves. AND THIS TIME LET'S PUT SEV'S ANTIDOTE IN SOME OF THEM!"

"And why?" said Sirius.

"To force some to change; forcibly cure them so they can't cause any more trouble; simultaneously delta test in on people we don't care if it harms or no; and get us some prisoners to question" said David.

"Ruthless little bastard, isn't he?" said James "I LIKE the way my successor as Head boy thinks."

"Severus" said Kinat "I think this is a situation where those of us who do guerrilla work better than flying work should deliver warriors right into the heart of the forest; and behind them. Trouble is the passage won't take large people. I want the junior marauders – except Jade of course - with Kalashikovs and if Remus would come, his furry form would fit through."

"What about a tiger?" said Professor Khan who had glided noiselessly in.

"Tigers squish just fine in the middle" said Kinat cheerfully. "Willow, you're not happy on a broom, will you come?"

Willow nodded.

"I'd be better with a gun than miaowing" she said "Marauders for the goblin passages over here then….Sev, will you break out the armoury?"

"_**ssss**Open**ssss**_" said Severus to the chamber of secrets. Muggle studies hobbies group people started tooling up as Severus and Sirius started handing out automatic weapons. "Don't go yet; we need to fill the hollow points and I need to get some of the antiwerewolf serum."

"Give that to us" said Kinat "We'll be responsible for getting you prisoners…give us a clip each of silver colloid as well in case we meet more furry little problems than we anticipated. They'll keep their senior officers near the middle; that way we get people who know something not the grunts. Can the rest of you types stop muttering and whispering? We're going to war, it ain't like it's a new experience. Anyone who didn't fight Voldemort who can't hack it, you'd better leave; but the first and second are going to have all the protection we can handle. Any flyboys go to Severus to be kitted up, Moorcrofts get the fuck down to the dungeon with the other potioneers and start cooking."

"We shan't be ready to move much before nightfall" said Severus "So those who are fighting take your weapons and go quietly to the great Hall and there will be food laid on. If you're too excited to eat, you may wrap the sandwiches that are being prepared and put them in your flak jacket pockets. You WILL need them. Kinat, bring the unfilled hollow points and fill them in the dungeon; when you have eaten, the rest of you drift casually outside under Hagrid and ah, Alice Trumball and Melody Bloom and follow their directions about digging ditches and filling them with brushwood…. I'm not sure we can hide that defence the way we did before."

"Meh, dad, wheesht now, for it's no' a problem" said Seagh "Will I no' cover the castle and its surrounds wi' glamour and the diggers work ahint of it. They'll nae see a thing."

"Ah!" breathed Severus "My clever son!"

"I'll cover you, my brother, just in case" said Erich "And I speak German fluently. I'll fly bludger, dad, if you were wondering."

"We scarcely seem necessary, Minerva, Filius" murmured Dumbledore.

"We need heavyweight spell casters on over-watch if the three of you would be kind enough" said Severus.

"Dear me how very stim… disturbing!" squeaked little Flitwick.

"I see you assume command, Scales" said James.

Severus shrugged.

"I appear to have a talent for organisation" he said "And the cold blooded ability to place troops where they'll do most good; not necessarily be safest. I can always weep for any afterwards if need be."

"Ever had to?"

"Not yet. David is a brilliant tactician; and I just make his ideas happen. We've got a good team. I don't think we need to call Harry and co in; and I have a good reason not to."

"What's that?"

"To prove to the school that they don't NEED Harry Potter because there's a hero in everyone who will stand up and be counted. I see by the way we lost half the middle school when told they could go; and kept the little ones."

"Some years have more balls than others" said James. "'Luck, Scales."

"Thanks Prongs."

Fortunately the weedkiller did not take long to brew; and Krait asked Minerva to help her transfigure water into petrol.

"Werewolves will burn with that on them too" she said. "If they get close enough that we have to use it."

"It's a terrible thing" said Minerva "But it's aye a terrible thing for these monsters ter send sich things against a school fu' of children."

"Exactly" said Krait.

Kinat filled bullets with serum and led his team off.

"Professor Khan, I can't demand it but I'll ask that you keep the marauder passages secret" he said.

"Hrrrrr...How about you make me an honorary marauder?" said Khan "Your younger elements have appeared at me out of the back of a fireplace before now; I take that as almost an invitation to join."

Kinat grinned.

"The original marauders were set up to protect a werewolf from himself; I don't know how Rakshasa work but I guess that's WELL in keeping with the original ideal."

"Does everyone know?" sighed Assim Khan "It's not the same. For us, almost all Rakshasa are hereditary; and we are not tied to the moon. We must however spend eight hours of every day in tiger form or start to become ill. I generally use my sleep period and some of my relaxation time."

"Oh, so it's by no means a disability the way being a werewolf is" said Kinat "I'm glad about that, sir."

"Hrrrr, you really are too" said Assim Khan. "I like teaching here; nobody turns a hair."

"I guess as you're that generation we should nickname you like the animagi" said Kinat "If you're to be a marauder; Stripes seems appropriate somehow."

"Accepted" said Stripes.

The guerrilla forces made their way down the goblin passages to the secret room; and Kinat swung up into the chimney to the lookout point.

He slithered down.

"They have an advance force milling around a little" he said quietly "Lynx, you're on first watch. And now we wait until we get the word."

"How do we get the word?" asked Stripes.

Kinat pointed to his scar.

The Rakshasa nodded. He did not understand all that was going on; but it was considerably strong magic. These children and youths with the scar had a self assurance beyond their years; but they had apparently earned it. He was not about to quarrel with it.

Behind Seagsron's glamour the MSHG dug ditches and filled them with faggots from the castle stores. Krait and Minerva's petrol stood by with pipes ready to pour – Krait explained how volatile it was, how they did not want to put it in too soon.

"Huorns at the edge of the forest" said Erich laconically.

"Weedkiller" said Shona Moorcroft; she and her brother had brought a cauldron out between them. Severus and Ed Dinalt followed with another; and Peter Thomson and Annis Shipton with another. The best potioneers in the sixth were too busy organising defences or acting as guerrillas; and most of the fifth should not, in Severus' opinion, be let loose with a cauldron. Except Ed; and he was also to fly.

The Huorns were ready; and night was falling. And they began to advance.

"Ready?" said David.

"At your order" said Severus, lifting his broom and adjusting his tank of weedkiller.

David grinned.

"Aor-aroor aroor WUFF WUFF! That's my other dog impression" he said, knowing that all the MSHG would recognise the quote from 'Kelly's Heroes'.

"Take it away Oddball" murmured Krait "We're missing the loud music to calm us down but never mind."

Several junior MSHG members started singing Burning Bridges, the theme from Kelly's Heroes.

"Hey, we're Fraser's heroes!" said one little voice "Steal me a Tiger tank, Fraser!"

"Where do muggles park their tanks?"

"Anywhere they want!"

"HUSH" said David.

Childish chatter from near the castle should not be anything the huorns and werewolves would find strange; but David wanted to think.

And they burst out of the glamour almost on top of the first line; for the huorns were advancing.

The protectors were flying with bludgeons in hand, to beat back the thrashing limbs of the walking trees to keep a path open for the seekers with their weedkiller to deliver to the roots of the trees.

And then the werewolves were coming forward, ready to leap on those flyers as they swooped low.

"Glamour – DOWN! Sharpshooters – READY!" called David.

The removal of the glamour made little difference; for the ditches were not obvious from a distance; and the lower school laid low. But the aiming for the snipers was easier without any kind of illusion, even if it was mostly transparent from the school side.

Most of the Huorns were ahead of the werewolves; David counted at least two dozen. That was two thirds of them.

He and Sirius, Erich, Dione Parnassus, Wido Mordaunt, Tamsin, Byron Bekard of Ravenclaw, and Francis Davenport were supporting the seekers, Severus, Krait, Abraxus, Hawke, Romulus, Jade, Lionel, Callum and Ed. Each one had to kill two and a bit Huorns; and that was achievable. Ellie and Upper Sixth MSHG snipers and a few younger ones had Kalashnikovs; Elisa Mourne was one.

And even so the Huorns advanced; and the werewolves ran behind them.

The huorns had to go down to get a clear field of fire.

"Stay on target" he said as Lionel shifted looking at the werewolves.

Lionel nodded.

And they were going in.

And Severus sent the pulse of blood to Kinat.


	13. Chapter 13

_I wrote this a long time before the nut job in Norway decided to gun down children for some right wing ideal; and I'm not about to write out my ODESSA storyline for sensitivity sake. These type of people don't actually care who gets hurt for their twisted little ideal__s and though this may look prophetic in some respects, I'm just going with the psyches of the sick creeps who believe in such supremacist ideas. The only way evil can triumph in the long term however is for good men to do nothing. _**  
><strong>

**Chapter 13**

Kinat and his troops left the cave at a silent run; and Stripes Khan was impressed at how quietly the human children managed to go. The spiders were not in evidence. There were some dead ones; Lynx had reported seeing werewolves killing spiders.

The troops Kinat had seen had moved forward now; but there was a little knot of eight. All but two were werewolves. Or rather, two were in human form; the stench of werewolf was too strong to tell if they were wolves or not.

"Kinat" Stripes breathed almost inaudibly "I will take down the two men if you will take the rest."

Kinat nodded.

The two Odessa men were likely to be a little too surprised by the arrival of a big tiger to worry about the rest. Remus had used his wolf form to come through the narrow way, but he was back in human form; he had the choice, and he chose to kill as a man kills, not as a wolf kills. He ceded leadership to Kinat, the expert in this field; and Kinat pointed silently to position his troops to make the killing field, glad that the officers and their bodyguard were so confident, so preoccupied with the obvious route to the school that they had not even posted sentries. He raised his hand; and dropped it.

The chatter of Kalashnikovs dropped the werewolves in their tracks; and then they were writhing and screaming, changing and clawing at the ground. One twitched and lay still.

"Oops. Overtrained" murmured Willow who had double tapped hers through the head on single shot.

"Never mind" said Kinat "We'll have enough."

The big striped body of Assim Khan landed like a pale ghost out of the darkness on both leaders at once. He sat on one and set his teeth into the neck of the other; very carefully.

Kinat came forward with ropes.

The one Stripes was sitting on wriggled wildly.

Stripes farted loudly. The writhing abated somewhat.

"Chemical warfare? Nice one Stripes" said Kinat.

The tiger chuckled a big fat purry chuckle.

"I do LIKE him" said Lynx. "I said someone with so white and fluffy a tummy was all right."

Assim Khan pretended not to have heard that.

Back on the edge of the forest the seekers swooped and delivered their payload; and the huorns screamed and thrashed; and the beaters thrashed back with their bludgeons. And David was joined by the defiantly screaming Godrica, the big Gyphon swooping and screeching defiance at the huorns. She made a noise of disapproval at David and came up beside him; and David knew what she wanted.

With a wild leap (that later he swore gave him palpitations to remember though he had done it without thinking at the time) he launched himself onto her back and beat back the walking trees from there. Having a Gryphon covering him gave small Callum Prince, who was David's responsibility, more confidence; and a cheer went up from all the defenders.

There was one more seeker than there were beaters; and Severus had chosen to be the one who was not covered. Dione, covering Krait tried not to think of the dangers he was taking.

Sirius was covering Jade; a tacit agreement to look after the daughter of his friend. David was of course on Callum, Tamsin was on Lionel. Francis covered Hawke, Erich covered Romulus, Wido on Ed and Byron Bekard covered Abraxus, who was later heard to say that it was kind of nice to find a decent Ravenclaw. Each had picked someone to cover; and the fastest were onto their second Huorns as Hagrid and Dell's older non-flying contingent advanced to finish off dying huorns with flamethrowers.

They were advancing still; but they wavered. And the werewolves howled and headed for the humans on foot.

"Fire at will as they come through our line" David used _sonorous_ to take his words to his snipers, ready, prone just behind a rise.

The fire sounded ragged; but it was all carefully aimed. These older ones had all fought werewolves before, save Elisa; they knew the score. Take one down, move targets. The silver colloid would kill those not killed outright; and very few even survived a well placed hollowpoint even without its deadly allergen.

Hagrid caught a werewolf as it leaped at him, his massive arms crushing its ribs even as it tried to tear at his face.

Alice had her silver knife out and ran it up smoothly under the ribcage. Blood spurted from the creature's mouth and Hagrid shook his head to shake the bloody sputum from his eyes.

"Gertcha!" he said, throwing it from him. "Alice! You….."

"I didnae want him tae sully your good looks" said Alice.

Hagrid laughed.

The others had fallen back to give the snipers a clear field of fire; but there were still some staggering huorns, afraid to go back to the terrible flying pain deliverers; uncertain what to do but go on. And they were almost on Hagrid and Alice.

Hagrid scooped up Alice in one arm and leaped the ditch.

"Liquid stuff!" he yelled, having forgotten what the petrol was. Faucets were released; the juniors knew what he meant.

"Wands – ready!" Hagrid pointed his pink umbrella.

He had had his wand restored officially but he was used to using the umbrella so he had put his new wand in it.

"FIRE!" Hagrid suited actions to words as did the other children; and a sheet of flame leaped up from the ditch. "Goodness me!" added Hagrid "That's damn good stuff there!"

His own wand work had also accounted for another werewolf on the other side of the ditch; used to using a broken wand, Hagrid had not yet got used to the fact that both a new wand and membership in a blood group had enhanced his abilities.

Filius Flitwick, Dumbeldore and Minerva were also busy picking off werewolves from broomback, and distracting huorns with spells to further help the seekers.

The second wave of trees had gone down now and only a few were left.

And the other dozen somewhere in the forest.

"OY!" James' portrait was yelling.

"Jade, with me" said Sirius and did a neat broomover to see what James wanted.

"There's a little knot of them just forward of the dead place" said James "A dozen of so, waiting around as though unsure what to do. They were thrumming and whooting discontentedly."

"Great news – and love the noises Prongs!" said Sirius "Hey, broomers close up, we have work to do!"

By the time they joined the others all two dozen advance Huorns were in a bad way.

Severus surveyed them. He had a nasty cut on his head and held one arm limply.

"We can't leave 'em here…animagi'll come an piss on 'em" he said with a ghost of a smile "I think actually we can leave them here if we know where the others are" he reflected that making film references was ridiculously addictive, and made a mental note to ask Krait if that was 'Any which way but loose' or the funnier 'Any which Way you Can'.

"Get clear, Scales, you're hurt" said Siruis. Severus shook his head.

"I'll see it through" he said "I'll go in as second wave though."

Sirius nodded.

No point arguing; marauders didn't butt out.

The knot of a dozen Huorns were NOT expecting to become the hunted.

"Bit like shooting fish in a – ow – barrel!" said Hawke gaily, ignoring the slash across his face.

Most of them had cuts and abrasions from thrashing twigs; it was, as Abraxus later described it, a bit like playing quidditch while someone took a birch switch to you. Abraxus had a broken ankle, which as he said didn't matter on broom back, Hawke's clothing had been long since scoured right off his back and half the skin too from too close a pass; and several beaters had cracked arms or collar bones.

All of which they reported back to Dumbledore as no serious injury.

It was nothing a quick Episkey spell could not fix.

And the Huorns were gone.

Godrica shied a bit at the resounding cheer she got; but David petted her; they had not finished by a long way.

The werewolves were still advancing; unsure what was happening and the more dangerous for that.

And they fell to a hail of silver.

The remaining few retreated, running for the bare place, the place that led to home.

And met Kinat and band.

They ran; they hit a wall of bullets; and they fell.

"Stimulating little fight" said Assim Khan "Excellent entertainment you put on here at Hogwarts."

Kinat grinned.

"We Marauders live but to please" he said. "Our juniors however have never seen the elephant before so they'll need a bit of love and care."

"Excuse me, seen the elephant? There are no elephants here, I know elephants."

"A term referring to combat; because you can't describe it if you haven't done it. You can't adequately describe an elephant if you haven't seen one, or even to someone else if they haven't."

"Ah. Yes. Understood" Assim Khan nodded. "They will feel sick I have no doubt and reaction will set in. We should – Remus and I will take them back to school if you and Willow will take care of our prisoners?"

"Not a problem" said Kinat. They had tied up their prisoners with magical chains and garden wire on general principles. One more werewolf had died from his dose of cure; though whether it was from the potion, his wounds, or a heart attack caused by stress and agony Kinat did not know. Severus would want to perform a thaumocropsy on him. The other four were no longer werewolves; Kinat had checked by wand. And the two humans were just that, and wore spiffy black robes with much silver braid at the neck, a little torn and rather tigery.

David and Severus would consider them a prize no doubt. The other four werewolves probably knew little and were only bodyguards; but they could always be killed later. Bringing them back to life to ask questions of was a little harder.

Willow and Kinat hoisted their prisoners in the air by the ankles and dragged them through the forest back to school prefect fashion; after stuffing the one who died later into the preservation cupboard to keep him nice and fresh until Severus had time for him.

They did NOT intend to use the passages for their prisoners; they might escape and use the knowledge. In case any humans got squeamish about doing away with them once they had been sucked dry of information.

Speaking of which, the dead werewolves and the one Willow shot would probably feed the spiders if they returned while they were fresh. Kinat shuddered. He did not really FEAR spiders; but they made him feel queasy. Too many legs.

One of the officers stirred.

"You take us to Harry Potter, yes?"

"Harry Potter? No. He isn't here, why would we disturb him over a small matter like this?" said Willow. "Good grief, do you think us wimps to run for Harry every time we have a small hiccup in the day to day running of the school? It hardly took calling out the sixth form really, but the middle school gets so excitable without a little prefect direction. You really overestimate yourself, Herr Obersturmbannfuhrer."

"How do you know my rank?" he gasped.

Willow was tempted to say 'because you just told me' but decided that was flippant; and to let him think she knew more than she did might be more productive.

She shrugged.

"Oh we know far more about your organisation than you realise I think. You need not think that just because you are a Colonel in the SS that we cannot browbeat you like some leutnant."

Kinat chuckled, recognising the rather mangled quotation from 'Where Eagles Dare'.

The prisoners were stowed in a dungeon with manacles. They were manacled – the right way up – and Severus poked the ex werewolves with his wand. They were barely conscious.

"Excellent, it has worked. But for voluntary subjects the effects are still too profound" he said. "But survivable, it seems."

"We kept the one that died of it for you to cut up" said Kinat "It was nice of Odessa to lend us some experimental subjects. Should we send and ask for some more?"

"I think we might have to go and collect some" said Severus "They appear to get a little too silly when they come voluntarily, it makes performing controlled experiments on them harder. You have done a pretty good job in delivering the serum to these ones however. I wonder if they are aware that they are no longer werewolves?"

"They seem too dopey to ask" said Kinat "Though being German it's hard to tell."

They left the prisoners in the able hands of Remus and Assim; who had taken less punishment and were fresher.

They might stew for a while.

Godrica muzzled at David as he praised her and petted her; strange trees and extra wolves in her forest were not what she expected or liked, and she wanted him to know that. But they were gone now; food for the various carnivorous beasts of the forest: including Godrica herself. But a petting first went down well and she purred at David before launching herself skyward for a meal.

"UUUGH" said Severus as he and Krait got to their apartments. Dione had come too; she had been helping to patch up Severus, and she wanted to hug her daughter fiercely.

Huorns were likely to find Ismenia a tasty snack; and as for werewolves….

Severus and Krait dealt night-time hugs all round to small people.

And then Severus was kissing Krait, hard, demandingly, having entirely forgotten that Dione was still there. Krait pushed against him, kissing back; and he swept her up into his arms to carry into the bedroom.

Somewhere along the way Krait's clothes disappeared, and she pulled back slightly to make a small gesture to pile them neatly and draw the pile along.

In the bedroom, Severus' clothes also disappeared and flew straight away into a neat pile. Dione couldn't help grinning; how VERY like Krait that things had to be just so!

She had not meant to follow and watch at the carelessly left door; but she was so drawn to them. And though their loving was almost rough it was so clear that loving it was, a sharing of each other's bodies in pleasure and release.

"BAD Dione!" Sirri was at her side, scolding in a whisper.

"Oh Sirri! I do want him!" said Dione.

Sirri could not fault that; and took the girl's hand and patted it gently.

The lovers cried out in release and Severus rolled away. Krait snuggled at him.

"Sirri…. I feel you" said Severus.

Sirri came forward, shedding her own clothes, also neatly, and growing to her human sized form. She climbed on top of Severus, giggling.

"Severus is tired; Sirri will drive" she said.

"WILL you now" said Severus catching hold of her and holding her just close enough to tantalise. Sirri squealed and giggled.

"You are a bad man!" she scolded.

"It's taken this long to find out?" said Severus lazily, fondling her.

They too loved; and Dione could not leave, fascinated and aroused. And Severus lay, entwined by both his women.

Krait had felt the presence of course; and spoke to Severus in their mind-lock.

"_**Dione is here you know."**_

"_**Poor child, she has no-one else…she will grow out of it, I hope."**_

"_**And if she does not?"**_

"_**Then that will be up to you and Sirri…. I have grown fond of her but again, she is not you."**_

"_**Let her feed her unrequited love and dawning awareness on this over the summer. When she is of age then we shall see how it goes. She's such a funny little thing, almost as cowed as an elf in some ways; and fighting back so bravely. I…will not I think mind. And now like Sirri she has fought alongside us; and she acquiesced to your demand to fight alone and protected me, took some considerable risks for me. That….that is a bigger love than a schoolgirl pash."**_

"_**It is, isn't it? She adores you….you are, my lovely Krait, everything she would like to be."**_

"_**Who knows? She might yet be. She has been forged as I was in fire; and angry, as I was; and actually much the same age I was when dragged into the light by you, my darling, and given a life. She and I have many similarities. Though I never suffered the indignity of rape as she has. The mental abuse at the hands of warring parents can wreak deeper scars to the spirit than those on my back from the whippings. For they did not touch my sense of self worth. Parental betrayal cannot fail to do so."**_

"_**I know that….. we will see."**_

Dione could not know that she was the subject of this deeply private conversation; but watched her favourite people drift into sleep before she withdrew softly to her own bed. And there she both cried a little and indulged in dreams, awake and sleeping, of what she wanted.

And what she did not really hope to have.

oOoOo

"Obersturmbannfuhrer, Hauptmann" said David. "I do trust you are quite uncomfortable."

"You need not think we shall talk" spat the Hauptmann.

"Everyone talks…. Eventually" said David. "You think we are crude and inefficient to use the cruciatus curse or the outmoded torture implements you see around this chamber? No, we will find other more efficient ways. But first we shall have a little chat…. Come and sit." He drew up a chair for himself and one each for them from the end of his wand.

Severus stood behind David, ready to use his subtle legilimensy.

They were in mind-to-mind communication.

David absently drew himself up a desk to put his feet on.

"_**You watch too many war films"**_ Severus said in his head.

"_**Is there such a thing as too many war films?"**_ retorted David. "And now" he went on "Let us discuss what it was that you hoped to achieve by this little fiasco."

"It was a small feint to test the defences of Hogwarts; I do not know why you attach so much importance to it" said the Colonel.

"Nice try" said David, who scarcely needed Severus telling him that this was a lie.

"_**He is wondering what Prince Gerhardt will think of his plan's disastrous failure"**_Severus passed on.

"So" said David "What did Prinz Gerhardt really want, hmm? Control of Hogwarts? Ah. I see. Control the young control the future. A little hard to control the young if your werewolf sturmtruppen have eaten them, isn't it?"

"We had no idea the children would fight! Such is not in ordnung!" shouted the Hauptmann.

"But of course the children fight" said David gently "After all, you people have avowed desires to kill the muggleborn and such; naturally our muggleborn children and their friends take that a little personally. Besides, it does keep the younger ones on their toes. Now, let us return to Prinz Gerhardt."

"_**He is the grandson of Grindelwald!" **_Severus was shocked.

"_**I thought Grindelwald was gay! Ah, though he may have just used the infatuation of one who was…or of course sired a child just for the potential of family…son of a daughter or of a son of Grindelwald, any idea?"**_

"_**None yet; I'll search."**_

"I have nothing to say" said the Colonel.

"So? It is my mind that you have nothing to say because the whole of that tribe are rotten to the core. Grindelwald lost it; the family is weak." Said David.

"THAT IS NOT SO!" shouted the captain "Did not Prinz Gerhardt kill his own father because Prinz Siegfried wanted to pursue weak and conciliatory tactics?"

"Did he so? I did not know that for certain" said David "But thanks for confirming that your precious prince is a parricide."

"You English cannot talk, did not Voldemort's daughter help to kill her own father?"

David laughed.

"Actually Harry Potter put a sword through him. Though yes, his daughter did oppose him. Hardly surprising under the circumstances. Did you think you were safe to attack with such heavyweight wizards as Harry out of the way?"

"We underestimated your forces" said the colonel "A foolish mistake. But you were almost certainly hard pressed; naturally you have taken heavy casualties. Now is the time to negotiate; we are both weakened by this. One of the things I know that Prinz Gerhardt wishes to offer is marriage to the daughter of Voldemort and a seat beside him ruling all of Europe!"

David laughed.

"And he is so fond of himself he believes she would find such an offer in any respect attractive?"

The Colonel flushed.

"She would have power! As would you as her leutnant I am sure, whoever you may be; Prinz Gerhart is young, attractive, vigorous!"

"And Voldemort's daughter is young, attractive, vigorous and married" said David coldly "And I would not dream of intruding on her private life to place so infamous a suggestion. You must be insane! As to who I am, why thank you for so ill-informed but flattering an offer to a mudblood like me. My name is David Fraser. Perhaps you were not expecting me. After all, you were not to know that I only turned seventeen half way through the Triwizard."

"It is unbelievable!" gasped the captain "Children so young here wield such power!"

The colonel kicked him.

"Now" said David "Let me tell you about our casualties."

"You can scarcely blame us for the deaths and injuries of children when it is you permit them to fight. Is that why Dumbledore is not here? Wallowing in guilt?" said the Colonel.

"You flatter yourself that you are worthy of his notice" said David. "Now; I will list our casualties. Item; one broken arm. Item; three broken collar bones. Item; one broken ankle. Item; one twisted ankle. Item; two cracked forearms. Item; a singed bottom. Item; sundry contusions. A more impressive list on your part than last time, the addition of the werewolves to the Huorns made it a little more challenging."

The blood drained from the face of the Colonel; David's easy manner and amused tone told him that this was in fact the truth.

"But….CHILDREN!" said the captain.

"Children who have grown up knowing nothing but fighting – because of Voldemort" said David.

"We….have made a grave error" said the colonel. "As has Prinz Gerhardt. When we return to him we shall report this and I assure you he will open negotiations willingly."

"I beg your pardon?" said David.

"We will put it strongly to Prinz Gerhardt that negotiations should be opened… how can I put it more plainly?"

David blinked. He made a show of his surprise.

"But what makes you think you are being returned?" he said.

It was the colonel's turn to be surprised.

"But…. But we are at your mercy, you have the opportunity to come to the negotiation table by sending us back as envoys!" he said "It is the most logical course!"

"No old boy; the most logical course is to kill you out of hand, and maybe send pieces of you back to Prinz Gerhardt to let him know what we think of his contumelious and futile attempts to present his delusions of adequacy" said David.

"_**I'm not sure I could have framed that better myself"**_ said Severus.

"_**Thank you….."**_David managed not to grin "But that would be barbaric. You have declared war; you are now, therefore, prisoners of war. For you, the war is over. You will be contained in a secure location. If need be you will be interrogated further. Your Prince has chosen to interfere with British wizards; be assured that we shall, when we can be bothered, crush his pretensions and humiliate him appropriately. But right now, some of us have exams to take, and I'm afraid I have more important things to think of than the jumped up ambitions of a second-rate dictator and his comedic followers. It was a nice little bit of sport; but you bore me now. You will be collected at some point for transfer to your place of internment."

"This is intolerable!" the Obersturmbanfuhrer leaped to his feet "That you should speak so contemptuously….

David could not resist.

"Sit DOWN Colonel!" he said in a Major Von Harpen voice. "What is intolerable is this continual petty and childish interference from Odessa and at such a time of year when we have exams! Is it any wonder that we find you tiresome and boring? Do you expect then to be taken seriously as a threat? Treated like anything but toy soldiers? Excuse me; we have fought Voldemort. We've seen the real thing. Playing with you is nothing. And since you will not sit when asked then you shall dangle instead" and he hoisted the furious colonel up without even bothering to gesture.

And there they left them, overseen by house elves who reported on the furious and revealing conversation between the two officers – who did not seem to consider the possibility of being eavesdropped on – which revealed that these were the last huorns they were likely to be able to find, and was a significant dent in their werewolf resources. The sentence that was puzzling was the colonel's comment that the Prince's plans concerning long term domination using his grandmother's ambitions would have to be the main plan for him from now on if he wished to control England. Nevertheless, the elves repeated it verbatim as they repeated everything else.

There were a few things to be learned; hints at locations of bases, the fact that the rescue of the bloodtraitor Ostrovski was being assumed to be the work of a Russian resistance group – and that they did not realise that it was indeed a rescue but assumed he had died in the firestorm caused by strange Slavic ritual magic – that Odessa was having to rely on keeping people in line with fear as they had lost too many good people recently.

The beliefs concerning Ostrovski were quite amusing; the man was alive and well and living in Nottingham with his muggle wife and their infant son. And the strange Slavic rituals were no more nor less than Severus and Sirius covering the tracks of the bloodgroup.

They also discussed the possibility of a mole within their own ranks, that this young man, scarce more than a boy, should know so much about them! This gave the blood group several more names of high ranking Odessa officers, for to the colonel it was inconceivable that a low ranking person should have the knowledge to pass on.

"We have been betrayed" he said "It is the only explanation that they should have been so ready and prepared for our blitzkreig."

The captain agreed. The concept of constant vigilance seemed to have passed them by.

"How can they act so stupidly?" asked David "They do not expect us to watch for them – although we have had trouble from their agents over Uschi. They do not expect legilimensy; and they are easily shocked into damning betrayals. Moreover they seem too innocent to expect to be listened to. Unless this is all misinformation?"

Severus shook his head.

"For one thing they are still suffering from capture shock. For another, they have as an organisation always been powerful enough to take the brute force route; no-one has stood before them before, therefore when we do they find it inconceivable that we should be able to do so, we mixed race untermenschen, and must therefore have had help from a traitor. The skill of legilimensy is rare; before I started teaching it and occlumensy here, perhaps a handful of people in England were legilimenses. They do not question subtly with a mix of psychology and Legilimensy and eavesdropping, but with torture; that we did not use torture put them off their guard. We should never have learned so much by using the cruciatus curse; that would have made them stubborn. They have been the powerful ones; to be suddenly in our power and helpless has been a blow so severe that we were able to obtain more than had they had a chance to prepare. You picked the right psychological moment to interrogate; and you did it brilliantly. The casual contempt for the master race was more than they could bear. As we fight on they will wise up, treat US less casually, be more prepared for setbacks. And then we shall have to work harder. For now we have something of an advantage; and we must use it."

The council of government held an extraordinary meeting to decide what should be done about foreigners who came waging war in the realm; for Azkaban was not designed for prisoners of war. It was decided that a new prison should be installed and Lucius suggested an underground prison along the lines of Gringott's bank vaults which were, of course, impenetrable.

As Gringott himself served on the council, having been given elevated social status as a representative of the goblin community Lucius reported to David what fun it had been to watch him squirm over the fact that they had still not found their errant Gryphon alive or dead in the labyrinth.

Essentially of course, to most intents and purposes, Gringotts WAS impenetrable; and the other council members agreed. And Gringott volunteered the information that there was a delving of a similar nature, though not on such a large scale, outside Nottingham, that had been abandoned for a more advantageous location inside the city.

Lucius visited it; and declared it perfect, with a few minor alterations. Officers and men were to be kept separate; ostensibly for the dignity of the officers, actually to remove leadership from what might prove a larger body of men; anti-apparating zones would be installed, layers of pass doors and Weasley's View-o-Sneaks.

The guards were to be goblins.

For one thing they knew underground places and were happy there; for another it would make the Odessa Pure-blood supremacists supremely unhappy to be guarded by the hated kobolds.

And the goblins were happy to have the chance to get back at symbols of oppression without getting into trouble for it.

Everyone was happy.

Except the prisoners of war.

But then, as Severus said, they didn't have to come and make a flaming nuisance of themselves in the first place.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

David really was telling no more nor less than the truth when he said that he wanted to concentrate on his NEWTs; he resented Odessa for interrupting his schooling. He was to teach; and he needed good grades for that. Training the young was more important than the petty irritations of a bunch who had shown themselves not even particularly professional.

The New Marauders were on the job of watching out – along with Prongs Potter - and he could leave matters safely in their hands. Even as they would leave it to the Junior Marauders next year for the taking of their own NEWTs.

David was taking six NEWTs; far more than average, and hoping to get good grades in a majority. He did not feel like risking taking a seventh; besides he did not need to prove himself the way Hermione had needed to prove herself, nor did he fall headlong into doing them for sheer fun as – he suspected – Krait had done.

He would however have taken an OWL in chanting; had it been offered as anything but a voluntary subject. Severus had applied for the exam to be formalised but the ministry could not find an examiner. There was another English teacher of chanting, who taught in the select continental girls' school but Severus viewed her efforts with some contempt as little more than was used in enchanting items.

"Being self taught in a subject for want of tutors does rather set it as a minority subject" he said regretfully "And yet it has immense applications!"

Severus was also writing a book – and had asked David to write a foreword to it – on the applications of blood magic in light magic. David had read the introduction and was struck by its powerful message. Severus had written,

"A muggle once said that one should, to get on in life, be guided by faith, hope and love; and the greatest of these is love. He was correct. Without love, blood magic is either useless or corrupt. Without faith in each other, those who enter into a blood pact, there is very little chance of success. And hope is ever a mainstay of why we undertake any path. Still, love may overcome any glimmers of despair or disbelief; and so it is the greatest. And love in its purity can make blood magic unintentionally, as Harry Potter's mother did, when she died for him and in her blood sacrifice caused him to be the boy who lived. Much is whispered about blood magic being evil; and blood magic can be used for evil, and in its crudest forms by evil people. Yet one might just as readily say that wands are evil because Voldemort used a wand. There is a culture of fear around that which is not understood; and it is the intent of this book to present to the world some greater understanding of both the uses and the inherent dangers in blood magic to permit a clearer view and a way to enable those who feel they have no other choice – to save the life of a loved one, perhaps – but to engage in blood magic, without becoming entangled in unnecessary dark ritual to the detriment of their souls and conscience. Blood magic should never be engaged lightly. Its consequences are far ranging and still not entirely calculable over generations. But it need not be dark magic.

Please note; no unicorns have been killed nor virgins sacrificed in the research for this book.

I bet some of you thought they had been and were looking for a cheap thrill.

Tough.

And now back to serious matters for those of you who were actually interested and were not prurient little voyeurs….."

David had laughed over that; and was more than willing to write a foreword – when his exams were over.

The Potions exam was first as it so often was. David suspected someone in the ministry of education arranging it that way with a tiny glimmer of sympathy so that the students might feel liberated from the stern Professor Snape. Erich was taking this as well, indeed most of the MSHG had done well enough to take the class, even Elizabeth Searle of Hufflepuff who had Weasley connections. She had negotiated very fast with Severus and declared she would be more than happy to scrape an 'A' grade.

Two people not in the MSHG were also taking Potions, Selina Bell in Slytherin, whom David thought more a Ravenclaw type; and Cicely Bern, a fairly decent Ravenclaw. Byron Beckard had joined the MSHG late, but he had joined, and he and Cicely grieved over the reputation Ravenclaw had acquired and encouraged the less wild exploits of their younger elements. With five Gryffindors, two Ravenclaws, four Slytherin and a Hufflepuff, Severus was actually rather pleased. Twelve was a good sized class for NEWT students. And all had a good chance of passing.

That the exam had been set by Horace Slughorn was immediately apparent. The preoccupation with Felix Felicis told its own story; and the fact that it was little more than a rearrangement of the exam Harry had sat, that David had worked through as part of his revision. As everyone else had access to that paper this was an absolute gift! There were also questions on acromantula venom and its uses and on the rules concerning antidotes for combined poison. David wrote cheerfully about the sum of the antidote to a blended poison needing to exceed the sum of the poisons, hesitated, and added

"When in doubt use a bezoar that cures all known poisons"

He had answered the question fully after all; and it was worth showing that he knew what a bezoar was in the hopes of bonus marks.

The practical involved brewing Amortentia, the most powerful love potion in the world; and an antidote of their choice to a love potion.

David disapproved of love potions on principal; though he made it scrupulously, and noted with pleasure its pearly sheen and the characteristic spirals rising. To him it smelled of new baked bread, fresh grass at dawn and Ellie's hair. He decanted it carefully; and chose to make the strongest possible antidote, a tricky little potion called Liberamore Major, involving powdered moonstone to balance the emotions and requiring great precision. Most of the rest of the class, he noted, were brewing the hate potion which was rather a brute force method of cancelling the infatuation; though Erich had picked another, more standard antidote. Lysistrata was trying to make the same potion as David, got in a muddle early on but without time to start again, wrote it up and collected a bezoar from the cupboard to hand in as an alternative on the principle that it was an imbalance and therefore a poisoning of the body and mind, as she told David afterwards.

"Does that work then?" asked David.

"Haven't a clue; I was panicking, I overran doing my first Amortentia anyway so I couldn't think how else to get any credit at all. I hoped at NEWT level I might at least get sympathy marks for logical woffle."

David laughed sympathetically.

"Still, at least the written paper was a gift" he said.

"You mean it wasn't quite such a beast as it might have been" said Lyssi.

Erich and Wido Mordaunt had enjoyed both written and practical; but most people seemed to concur with Lyssi that it wasn't such a beast as it might have been.

Wido had prepared the hate potion.

"I wrote up that hate is easier to overcome because most hatreds are illogical and so it was by comparison to a love potion safe; because love or infatuation do not have to be logical" he said "Not so elegant as the eyeopener potion of Erich or your Liberamore Major you brewed old boy; but you know me, I dislike everyone at the best of times"

David laughed.

"Idiot" he said affectionately.

Defence against the Dark arts was also a gift, or so it seemed. Again the MSHG were taking this as a body; they had had rather a lot of practice of actually defending against the dark arts.

The written exam covered descriptions of the unforgivable curses, and cursed wounds, all of which David knew plenty about. He wrote boldly that a cursed wound might only be healed by blood magic and only where love lies between the one who would cure and the wounded; and cited as examples the restoration of Alastor Moody's leg and the curing of a cursed wound to the hand of Albus Dumbledore that had also required much dedicated chanting. He had seen Moody since Abigail's determined healing of the man and could therefore write with confidence that the results of both instances had been witnessed personally though he had been present only at one of them. The healing of Grace's hand by Draco after the bullying of the Ravenclaw girls was none of their business; Grace was too shy to inflict with examination board oiks if they wanted to check up.

He might lose marks; but it was time to speak out that blood magic was not dark per se. And then he grinned and added that another instance he might cite was the curing of Harry Potter of death by his mother's blood sacrifice, though that had required the greatest of love since it proved fatal for her.

They could not deny THAT one.

What David was not aware of until much later was that the paper was being marked by Alastor Moody who had muttered rather about being cited as an example, but had not been prejudiced against blood magic as such.

The practical was a cinch.

Non verbal spells were a feature of NEWT level DADA; the which David had been casting since he was fourteen. The exam took the form of a duel with an examiner permitted to use the two non fatal unforgivable curses and David absently blocked before they were even spoken each time; and one cast non verbally at him before the thought was fully formulated; then cast a simultaneous _expelliarmus, silencio _and _levicorpus_ on Professor Tofty, having discovered that most silenced, wandless wizards dangling by the ankle were capable of very little else. He then went and politely retrieved the Professor's pince-nez that had fallen off, and gently restored the elderly wizard to his feet, offering his glasses with an apology.

"I – I wanted to show how I'd deal with a deatheater for collection by an auror" he said.

The little wizard was beaming, if rather red in the face from being dangled head down.

"Excellent, excellent, countered beautifully throughout, barely even used your wand either! Stuck it in your belt to finish me off, gadzooks and you still combined three spells at onces non verbally! Splendid work!" he quavered. "What would you do if your wizard was still capable of casting silenced and wandless?"

"Nut him in the crotch sir" said David without thinking.

Tofty cackled in delight.

"Nut him in the crotch! So simple! So effective! So lowering to a dark wizard! Lateral thinking my boy; an excellent thing when fighting the dark arts, lateral thinking!"

Most of the MSHG had done well, though few were as practised duellists as David; Erich too had enjoyed his duel – since it had a purpose – and had performed solidly, blocking well and using _Stupefy_.

None of the others had suggested physical violence.

"You'll either get an'O' for cheek or a 'T'" said Lissa Crabbe cheerfully when they discussed it.

"He will an 'O' assuredly get" said Erich "For I overheard Professor Tofty telling Professor Dumbledore that he thought the head boy a most excellent and practical young man."

David went red but grinned.

Charlie Weasley was testing David on the practical in Care of Magical Beasts; and David was the only one taking the exam.

He had written a detailed essay on the differences between the different kinds of Dragons and how best to avoid trouble with them – and had resisted the temptation to write that one should avoid known dragon country to best avoid dragons, writing instead that if one could not avoid dragon country one should perform the following acts, listing the best ways of avoiding trouble with each kind of dragon. He ran out of inspiration over the Norwegian Ridgeback and just wrote 'apparate someplace, anyplace else'. It might give someone a laugh anyway.

For the practical Charlie – Professor Weasley as he must call him – took David through a magical gate to the seashore.

"You'll need to collect for me the murtlaps to remove their back tentacles" he said. "Good luck."

David looked about him; the wishing of luck made him recall another seaside creature, the Mackled Malaclaw, which had a bite that would give its victim bad luck of up to a week, a kind of anti-felix felicis.

Sure enough, the shoreline was stiff with Mackled Malaclaws.

"May I ask a technical question unrelated to how I solve this sir?" said David.

"You may ask; I may not answer it." Said Charlie.

"If I get bitten by one of these lucksucking lobsters can I be sequestered and take the rest of my exams when the bad luck has worn off?" asked David "Because if not I'm not risking it. I still have three exams to go after this. I'd rather fail one than three."

"A reasonable question. If you are bitten you are permitted a balanced dose of Felix to counteract the effects as based on your blood-state as measured by your school potioneer."

David nodded.

"Open to abuse I suppose but as fair as possible; I think this exam should be put last."

"It would have been but I've an expectant clutch and I want to get back to it. I negotiated the compromise."

"Fair enough sir" said David.

"The secret is, don't get bitten" said Charlie cheerfully.

Easier said than done; the mackled malaclaw was well disguised on the shoreline. And the community of murtlap were visible grubbing about beyond them.

They did not like fresh water however.

David got out his wand.

"_Aguamenti"_ he said. He sprayed the wand in front of him; and the lobster-like creatures scuttered out of the way.

The murtlap, rat-like creatures with a sea-anemone like growth on their backs were busy grubbing after crustacea. The growth on their backs could be pickled to promote resistance to curses; and murtlap juice from the same source could ease even cursed wounds and cure lesser wounds. There was an art in harvesting the growth to leave enough behind to regrow to avoid having to kill these useful little creatures; and only licensed murtlap harvesters were supposed to do so. Presumably the ones David was collecting would then go to a licensed harvester. One might presume that they had developed this – gland, he supposed – as a defence against the bad luck from the bite of the Malaclaws with which they shared their environs. He scooped some sand into the bottom of the basket he was to place them in to make them feel at home; and used his wand to quickly lift and deposit as many as possible inside before the rest took fright and either ran away or tried to attack him.

They broke and ran and he returned carefully, spraying any Malaclaws that had returned.

Cleaning a firecrab was far less stressful.

Killing a manticore was far less stressful come to that. He handed the basket to Charlie who opened it and counted.

"EIGHT?" he said.

"Best I could do" said David waspishly.

"Bugger it, boy, a pro hopes to get six or seven as a general thing" said Charlie, impressed. "Nice work; and they seem fairly happy – well, not too unhappy, too. You got a nice lot of crustacea in that sand you dug, they're starting to root again."

"I don't like animals to be distressed" said David "Even Norwegian Ridgebacks. After that though I might not be too concerned over cruelty to examiners though."

Charlie grinned.

"You'll do fine!" he said.

It was Arithmancy next; only a written exam, thank goodness, though it was a massive four hour one. There were five of them for that exam; Fenella, Wido and two Ravenclaws, Orla Quirke and Hugo Moonin. Fenella and David had performed best in class; Fenella had needed to learn that there were things she did not know, but had soon pulled level with David in most arithmantic disciplines once she had moved into Gryffindor House and settled down. They had a friendly rivalry now.

David found the exam stiff but stimulating. The paper was a series of examples to solve, such as how to calculate when and facing which direction to break a particular curse; to give a geomantic location to find the splinched leg of a wizard, given certain apparating conditions; the calculation for the shortest route from A to B for apparating; the calculation for the best time to harvest puffapods knowing when the seeds had been sown and the state of the moon.

David added that this calculation had left out such other variables as weather, but that dependant on how quickly the weather permitted harvesting added two further calculations for arithmantically favourable times to take in hotter drier conditions and wetter colder conditions. He might not have been taking Herbology but it did not take a NEWT level education in herbology to know that plants needed a sight more than good will and calculations to grow, and moisture and sunshine were two of them.

The siting of various new buildings was child's play on the whole, though having looked at some comparative magic he did cite the example of Eastern traditions giving slightly different starting criteria.

The last question was a very tricky formula without explanation; the question being to work out what it represented.

It was a place equation containing terms of i cubed with a very nasty looking piece of integral calculus. Heh, he knew what that was, it was a calculation of wizarding space; and he wrote that down hastily so he would be credited with knowing that much even if he got no further. If he could solve a portion of it that would help…

David scribbled hastily, then breathed a sigh of relief. It was in London; which gave several possibilities, but only one on that orientation.

It was the equation for the setting up of Diagon Alley.

And that was the last question.

He had half an hour in hand; had he missed something?

Scrupulously David checked each question to be sure he had not left out all or any of a question; in a multipart question it was easy to read over a second – often higher marked – part in the stress of an exam. He found no omissions, and could think of nothing more to add anyway. And there were no other pages for he checked the numbers on each and the last question was on page four of four.

He sat back and relaxed.

After the exam Hugo Moonin smirked and said

"I see the last question defeated even the great Mr Fraser."

"No" said David "What gave you that idea?"

"You were sitting there for a full quarter hour doing nothing!"

"I'd finished" said David.

"David: I hate you" groaned Wido "That blasted place equation was somewhere in London, but where the hell was it?"

"Diagon Alley of course; it runs from east to west" said David.

Wido smote his brow.

"Bother" said Fenella "I got the east to west but I'm not familiar with London, and I get confused as to what direction I'm facing."

"You WERE at a disadvantage" said David "Most of us are there every year, starting with the sun at our backs going in, fetching up with the sun at our backs going out after a long day's shopping."

"Why the hell didn't I think of that?" said Wido. "So how far did you get with it Moonin?"

Hugo Moonin glowered.

"I got as far as it was a wizarding space equation" said Orla Quirke "I'm afraid I wasn't sure where so I made a wild guess it would be somewhere we all knew well so I said London, Platform Nine-and-three-quarters and hoped if I was right I'd get some marks even if I couldn't substantiate my reasons. I don't suppose Hugo actually got any further."

Hugo Moonin was fuming. He had relaxed when he thought even Fraser could not do the question; it never occurred to him that he sat doing nothing because there was nothing more to do. He stormed off in a royally Ravenclaw huff.

Nobody missed him.

David was a lone entrant again for his penultimate exam, Geomancy.

The written was quite tough, involving filling in a world map with key nodes; and marking on another map the usual routes from London to various other locations. Then two routes from one place to another were described – mercifully both places were in England – and he had to discuss the pros and cons of each route. The final question called for stops on the Knight Bus to be listed in order with a brief explanation. David hated this question. The route of the Knight Bus used similar reasoning to transfiguration convention of similar names being easy to associate; and though it generally went according to the alphabet this was not always so. Consequently he listed 'Aberdeen – Abergerveny – Brent Eleigh – Monk's Eleigh – Caterham – Mousehole – Chesterton' reasoning that the two ending in 'Eleigh' would be magically associated and that a town beginning 'cat' would be followed by one beginning 'mouse'.

It was true; there WERE weird connections through the ley lines and other almost wizarding space connections. But he didn't have to LIKE the logic.

The practical was not unlike the OWL practical only a little more complex. He was given a list of places, and objects left in those places and it was up to him to pick a best route to travel them and return with all the objects.

The examiner had wised up after the last exam and had asked for his cup of tea to be brought into the grounds this time.

David was not quite so quick this time; but the examiner was only just draining the last drop and he arrived back with a hat from Harrowgate, a teddy bear from Bridgend, a quill from Avon and a book from Reading.

David had his own priorities and whilst they may not have meant anything to a muggle geographer, they did not always accord with the priorities of the wizarding world either. However, the main thing was, as David had discovered, to believe in your connections firmly.

Only one to go.

Transfigurations was the exam David was dreading. Not the practical; he had no fears about that at all. He just loathed some of the theory.

Fortunately most of the written paper involved the two things David was happy with; summoning and banishing spells and human transfiguration. He wrote happily, and was amused that one question was the definition of an animagus. He had mugged up the five exceptions to Gamp's law of transfiguration and scarcely had to nibble the end of his quill to recall them. He did have a question on the theory of transfiguration by name and appearance but took Madam Marchbanks' advice and commented that similarities were subjective not objective and the similarity had to be in the mind of the witch or wizard casting the spell for the changes to occur, such that to one of a muggle upbringing Linnaen taxonomy might appear more appropriate. He gave examples using Latin names as well as common names to illustrate his point; suggesting that one might transfigure an English oak tree into a holly bush by going through the Holm oak; from Quercus Robur to Quercus Ilex to Ilex aquifolium. Equally that holly bush might now become a fountain since its secondary name, aquifolium, was distinctly watery.

He quite enjoyed his arguments and hoped they would be relevant enough to get him a pass on the written paper.

The practical was taken by Madam Marchbanks herself.

"My goodness, Mr Fraser!" she said "How nice to meet you again… well we hardly need deal with the summoning part of the exam since I have already seen your most excellent efforts on that subject; still the most comfortable chair I have ever had, nobody ever takes the effect of the shape of the legs into account. And I have short upper legs, a terrible affliction. Now Mr Fraser, I hear you are a dog animagus?"

"Yes ma'am" said David.

"Do you mind showing me? For extra points" she said.

David shrugged into dog, played dead, begged, and wagged his tail before shifting back again.

Madam Marchbanks nodded.

"Excellent! And you can I believe do …unusual transfigurations?"

"Well being a Gryffindor, it's a matter of belief to be a Gryphon" said David. "Did you wish me to…"

"If you do not mind"

David made sure to make it look harder to shift form. He had a strong suspicion it was supposed to be harder than he found it so concentrated quite obviously, changing a bit at a time. He returned to human form.

"Quite excellent!" said Madam Marchbanks. "Now the last thing is the fiddle to cat transformation…. I suppose you'll refuse to change it back again?"

"I'm afraid so Madam Marchbanks" said David.

"Well better an excess of sentimentality than callousness" she produced the violin. It was a cheap model, stained wood and the top had faded though the sides were richly coloured and well striped.

David was thinking too hard about the colour, and how like Assim Khan it was with his pale fluffy tummy when he was transfiguring the violin; but he did not intend to make it into a tiger.

"Oh my goodness!" said Madam Marchbanks.

"I'm sorry" said David "It was the colouration. The pale belly…." The tiger was a trifle nonplussed too; and before it could decide that it was nonplussed and hungry David rapidly changed it into a red tabby cat with a pale tummy and outsize testicles. The ginger tom prrr'ped and jumped on Madam Marchbanks' lap where he started making affectionate kneadings.

"Well this one appears to have decided where his home is going to be" she said. "Mr Fraser, you are a very talented, but sometimes rather unexpected transfigurationist."

"Sorry ma'am" said David, again.

She patted his arm.

"I think you are very instinctive" she said "And I should not be surprised if you had children who turn out to be metamorphagi. It's been a pleasure to examine you."

"Thank you ma'am" said David.

Naturally he was teased by the others of his class about managing to get a tiger out of a violin.

"And not even a tiger CUB" said Wido "But a full size honest to goodness Bengall Tiger! WHAT were you thinking of?"

David grinned weakly.

"Can you believe, Lynx Weasley's comments about Professor Khan'a fluffy white tummy. Uh…he's an animagus" he temporised for those who knew nothing about Assim's tiger form. "All the animagi hunt together…."

"Well I think it a most improper and undignified thing for the head boy to do!" said Ravenclaw's Stewart Ackerly.

"You can THINK Ackerly? You amaze me" said Wido.

"He was a very fine tiger" said Erich "But I think happier will be as Madam Marchbanks' pussy cat."

"Oh I agree" said David. "Teach me to let my mind wander, won't it? Do you think I'll get horridly penalised?"

"I think you'll get a 'T'" said Ackerly.

All the students had been in the great hall together; and David suspected the sudden appearance of a tiger on the next alphabetical station to him had upset Ackerly; and took this with a pinch of salt.

"It does not specify domestic cat in the rules actually" said Thierry. "And a tiger is a cat. One is given credit for markings and pedigree on one's own choice of cat."

"That's me a few down then" said David "I made him into a fairly ordinary domestic mog."

"But you should be credited on the fine markings of a most splendid Bengal Tiger" persisted Thierry.

David shrugged.

"We shall see when I get my results whether she liked his stripes or disliked his teeth. I think I did enough with everything else to pass anyway; and I never had any great hopes of doing well on transfigurations anyway"

Ellie at least was on hand to hug David and murmur soothing words about how Lucius and Severus and Krait knew his worth to have him teaching next year full time; and David was comforted. He chuckled.

"What?" said Ellie.

"You know that poem by Tolkein, about fat cat on the mat, who dreams about being a big cat? I was thinking of Ginger Mog, and wondering if he will remember his moment as a tiger, thinking about the last line; fat cat, on the mat, kept as a pet – he does not forget."

Ellie grinned.

"So long as he doesn't try eating big dogs that try to chase him."

David chuckled.

"Y'know I reckon most cats DO believe they have a tiger's head (four feet from his tail) because most cats act like they're at least twice as big as any dog they meet. Speaking as a dog, meeting a dog-hating cat is actually a pretty scary experience. Like Calvin says of Hobbes, five of their six ends are pointy."

Ellie hugged him.

"Well, he'll be spoiled rotten" she said.

And it was all but over.

There was the end of term feast; and Dumbledore thanking David, and all those prefects who were leaving, for doing such a good job; and he had to settle down the ovation David was given.

"And we all wish our leavers, perhaps especially David Fraser who goes on to teach at Rowan House, all the best" said Dumbledore. "And now the shields; the Quidditch shield was won officially this year by Slytherin; a solid performance from Gryffindor but not quite enough to take those last few points. And the House Shield; fourth, Hufflepuff; third, Ravenclaw, who have made up in enterprise what they lost in mischief; and joint winners for the first time ever, Gryffindor and Slytherin. All houses won points over the defence against the Huorns, and I have to say this year's shield points stand closer than I have ever known them, so really congratulations are due all round. The marauders shield this year again had very close runners up in Lionel Dell's group; but for the sheer gall of all-house japes, jinxes and concerts, this shield goes to Mei Chang, Mad Lockhart, Chad Fenwick, Leo Black-Weasley and Lydia Snape, who I believe are known as the proto-marauders?"

"We're promoting them to the Mini Marauders, sir!" called Hawke.

"Then the Marauders' shield goes to the Mini Marauders!" said Dumbledore.

Mei led her group to collect it.

"Shall we sing the cauldron monster song sir?" she asked.

"Why not!" enthused Dumbledore, who liked his music lowbrow.

And so they did.

And it was the end of term; and the end of David's life as a pupil.

And the beginning of his life as a professor.

**The End**

_Sorry this was a short one. They start getting longer again though._


End file.
